I LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 5 

#1% jy» 

$ $ 

| UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. f 



Western Cavaliers: 



EMBRACING THE HISTORY OF 



THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN 
KENTUCKY FROM 1832 TO 1844. 



By A. H. BEDFORD, D.D., 

Author of "The History of Methodism in Kentucky," "The History 
of the Organization of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South," and "Fred Brenning." 



NASHVILLE, TENN. : 
SOUTHERN METHODIST PUBLISHING HOUSE. 
1876. 




Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1875, by 

A. H. KEBFOED, 
in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



3TEREOTYPED AND PRINTED AT THE SOUTHERN METHODIST PUB- 
LISHING HOUSE, NASHVILLE, TENN. 



Dedication. 



1 % py. ®|0iro ®sm0ifo Summer*, f f 

Dear Sir: — The first time I remember to have 
seen you was in the month of May, 1850, during 
the session of the General Conference of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, South, held in the 
city of St. Louis. In 1854, at the General Con- 
ference which convened that year in the city of 
Columbus, Georgia, I had the pleasure of renew- 
ing your acquaintance; and in 1858, during the 
meeting of the same body in the city of Nashville, 
I met you again. The respective fields we occu- 
pied were too remote from each other to permit, for 
the time being, any farther acquaintance; hence, 
eight years passed away before we were thrown 
together again; for the most part, they were years 
of sacrifice, of sadness, of suffering. During this 
period a civil war had swept over our country, 
desolating the homes of our people, deluging the 
nation with the blood of brothers, and threaten- 
ing the existence of our Church. It was in 1866, 

(5) 



6 



Dedication. 



when the noise of war had been hushed in the 
stillness of peace, that the General Conference 
convened in the city of New Orleans. Although 
time had dealt gently with you, yet its foot-prints 
were seen upon your brow. At this session of 
the Conference, your election as Editor of Books 
and of the Christian Advocate, and mine as the 
General Book Agent of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, brought us into close and intimate 
relations to each other. For nearly ten years we 
have had almost daily intercourse, and have shared 
each other's confidence and affections. During this 
time no discord has disturbed our harmony, nor 
has any difference of opinion chilled our friend- 
ship. In the performance of the difficult duties 
with which I have been charged by the Church, 
you have always been a judicious and faithful 
counselor. Amid the cares that have oppressed- 
me, and the anxiety I have felt to meet the ex- 
pectations of my brethren, the sympathy you have 
always expressed and the hand of a brother held 
out to me at all times have contributed much to 
the advancement and progress of the interest con- 
fided to my care. Indebted, as I am, to your 
generosity and kindness, it is not surprising that 
for you I cherish a feeling of more than friend- 
ship. I therefore beg permission to dedicate this 
volume to you. 



Dedication. 



7 



"With many of the stirring events recorded in 
this volume I am not only familiar, but was per- 
sonally identified. Acquainted with most of the 
preachers of the Methodist Church in Kentucky 
from my childhood, entering the Church the year 
subsequent to the date at which this volume 
opens, and admitted on trial into the Conference 
four years later, I had every opportunity not only 
of watching its onward march, but the obstacles 
that confronted it in its advance. Its rapid prog- 
ress, adding an hundred -fold to its membership 
in the short space of twelve years, commands the 
admiration and excites the wonder of all who are 
familiar with the difficulties by which it was op- 
posed. 

For more than twenty years it has been my 
purpose to prepare this work and offer it to the 
Church. During this time I have availed myself 
of every opportunity to gather and preserve such 
facts and incidents as might contribute to its in- 
terest. It covers twelve years, embracing a most 
brilliant period of the history of the Church in 
Kentucky, containing brief sketches of many of 
the preachers, and recounting revivals of extraor- 
dinary influence and power, the mention of which 
is sufficient to enliven the zeal and kindle afresh 
the ardor of younger men in the ministry. Inci- 
dents, too, of thrilling interest have been carefully 



8 



Dedication. 



preserved, and will contribute to the adornment 
of these pages. 

With sincere prayers that your valuable life 
may long be spared to the Church, and that when 
you pass away you may enter upon eternal life, 
I am, truly, your brother in Christ, 

A. H. BEDFORD. 

Nashville, Tenn., January 1, 1876. 



Contents. 



CHAPTER I. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1832 TO THE CONFERENCE 

'of 1833. 

PAGE 

The first cavalier 17 

Conference at Harrodsburg 18 

The veterans 19 

The chief officers 19 

The recruits 19 

John Emory 20 

Death of Franklin Davis 22 

Examination of character 23 

Benjamin Ogden 24 

Barnabas McHenry 25 

Augusta College 28 

Science Hill Female Academy 28 

Bardstown Female Academy 28 

Bishop McKendree 28 

The appointments 29 

Asiatic cholera 31 

Revivals 33 

Cholera in Louisville, Shelbyville, 

and Cynthiana 35 

Jackson's Purchase 36 

Hezekiah Holland 36 

Lewis Garrett 36 

Hickman Circuit 37 

Sandy River Circuit 37 

Tennessee Mission 38 

Clarke's River Circuit 38 

Thomas A. Morris 38 

Interesting sketch 38 

Thomas Smith 43 

George W. D. Harris 48 

Alexander L. P. Green 48 

Wadesboro Circuit 50 

Charles T. Ramsey 51 

Arthur Davis 52 

Revival in Hickman Circuit 58 

Camp-meetings 59 

Thomas L. Bosvvell 60 

Calvin Thompson 60 

Revival in the Wadesboro Circuit.. 62 

Methodism in Paducah 62 

Support of superannuated preach- 
ers, widows, and orphans 63 

Increase in membership 63 

Missionary collections 61 

Support of the preachers 65 

i* 



PAGK 

The first missionary collection 68 

The Book Concern 68 

American Colonization Society 71 

Death of Joseph B. Power 72 

Death of Barnabas McHenry 73 

Death of Marcus Lindsey 73 

CHAPTER II. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1833 TO THE CONFERENCE 
OF 1834. 

Conference in Greensburg 74 

Robert Richford Roberts 74 

A Bishop's salary 76 

The Western Christian Advocate 79 

Augusta College 81 

Roberts professorship of mathe- 
matics 82 

A financial system 83 

The temperance question 84 

The subject of dress 85 

Henry B. Bascom 86 

George C. Light 87 

Admissions on trial 88 

Locations 89 

Superannuated preachers 89 

Revival in Lexington 91 

Revival in Port William Circuit.... 92 
Revival in Newport and Covington 92 
Revival in Germantown Circuit.... 92 

Revival in Fleming Circuit 92 

Revival in Lewis Circuit 93 

Revival in Big Sandy Circuit 93 

Revival in Mount Vernon Circuit.. 93 

Revival in Cumberland Circuit 93 

George W. Brush 95 

Revival in Shelbyville 99 

William B. Landrum 102 

Foster H. Blades 105 

Revival in Hartford Circuit 106 

Revival in Jefferson Circuit 106 

Revival in Breckinridge Circuit... 107 
Revival in Yellow Banks Circuit... 107 

Revival in Logan Circuit 107 

Revival in Glasgow Circuit 108 

Opposition to Methodism 108 

Revival in Wadesboro Circuit 109 

Revival in Hickman Circuit 109 

(9) 



10 CONT 

PAGE 

Increase in membership 109 

Death of Thomas P. Vance 109 



Death of William P. McKnight.... 109 
CHAPTER III. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1834 TO THE CONFERENCE 
OF 1835. 



Conference at Mount Sterling Ill 

Joshua Soule Ill 

Debts due the Book Concern 118 

Itinerant system to be guarded.... 120 

Missionary collections 123 

Organization of the Kentucky- 
Conference Missionary Society'.. 123 
Agent for the Missionary Society.. 124 

The Colonization Society 124 

Preachers admitted on trial 125 

Locations 125 

Revival in Frankfort 129 

Revival in Falmouth Circuit 129 

Decrease in Lexington District 129 

Revival in Hinckstone Circuit 130 

Revival in Little Sandy Circuit 130 

Revival in Big Sandy Circuit 130 

Revival in Germantbwn Circuit 130 

Decrease in Augusta District 130 

Decrease in Harrodsburg District 130 
Revival in Mount Sterling Station.. 130 
Revival in Mount Vernon Circuit .. 130 
Revival in Cumberland Mission.... 131 

Increase in Louisville District 131 

Decrease in Hopkinsville District,. 132 

Revival in Greenville Circuit 133 

Revival in Hopkinsville Station ... 133 
Decrease in Greensburg District.. 133 

Decrease in membership 133 

George W. D. Harris leaves Ken- 
tucky 134 

His sermon at Mobley's Camp- 
ground 134 

Death of Benjamin Ogden 137 

Death of Francis Landrum 137 

Death of Samuel Harrison 137 

Death of William Adams 137 

Death of Minor M. Cosby 137 

Death of William Outten 138 



CHAPTER IV. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1835 TO THE CONFERENCE 
OF 183G. 



Conference in Shelbyville 140 

James Osgood Andrew 140 

His first sermon in Shelbyville 143 

A resolution to extend the circula- 
tion of the Western Christian Ad- 
vocate 146 

Methodist Magazine 147 

Quarterly Review 147 

r lhe subject of temperance 147 

Abolition and colonization 148 

Delegates to General Conference 
of 1836 150 



ENTS. 

PAGE 



Sermon by Thomas N. Ralston 150 

Sermon by Henry B. Bascom 151 

Sermon by Bishop Andrew 153 

Missionary sermon by Bishop An- 
drew 155 

Admissions on trial.. 157 

Locations 157 

Henry J. Evans 157 

Thomas P. Farmer 158 

Barboursville District formed 160 

Decrease in membership 161 

Revival in Yellow Banks Circuit... 161 

Revival in Newcastle Circuit.... 161 

Revival in Falmouth Circuit 162 

Revival in Port William Circuit.... 162 

Revival in Augusta 162 

Camp-meeting near Perryville 162 

Revival in Bowling Green Circuit. 163 

Emigration from Kentucky 163 

Thomas Joyner 165 

Paducah Circuit formed 165 

Death of Bishop McKendree 166 



CHAPTER V. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1836 TO THE CONFERENCE 
OF 1837. 



Conference in Louisville 167 

Bishop Soule presided 168 

Admissions on trial 168 

Locations 169 

William S. Evans 169 

John Redman 170 

Herrington Stevens 170 

Death of Henry S. Duke 170 

Death of John Littlejohn 170 

Death of William Phillips 171 

Revival in Dover 174 

Revival in Bardstown 174 

Revivav in Washington 174 

Revival in Wayne Circuit 175 

Revival in Madison Circuit 175 

Revival in Campbellsville 175 

Revival in Greensburg Circuit 175 

John Newland Maffiti 176 

Revival in Lexington 181 

Revival in Danville 188 

Revival in Harrodsburg 189 

Joseph D. Barnett 189 

Revival in Lebanon Circuit 191 

Revival in Burksville Circuit 191 

Revival in Germantown Circuit 191 

Camp-meeting near Carlisle 192 

Revival in Mount Sterling Circuit.. 192 

Revival in Danville Circuit 192 

Revival in Somerset Circuit 192 

Revival in Richmond 193 

Camp-meeting at Pleasant Grove, 

Yellow Banks Circuit 193 

Camp-meeting at No Creek, Hart- 
ford Circuit 193 

Revival at Bell's Chapel 194 

Revival in La Fayette Circuit 194 

Revival in Madisonville Circuit 194 

Revival inMaysville 194 



CONT 

PAGE 

Methodism in Jackson's Purchase 195 



Adam Goodwin 195 

Findley Bynum,... 195 

Revival in Paducah Circuit 196 

Increase in membership 197 



CHAPTER VI. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1837 TO THE CONFERENCE 



of 1838. 

Conference at Frankfort... 198 

Bishop Roberts... 198 

Resolution guarding the itinerant 

system 199 

Proposal to transfer Hubbard H. 
Kavanaugh to the Missouri Con- 
ference 200 

The Conference protests 201 

Thomas Lasley and slavery 202 

Resolution in reference to special 

sermons 203 

John Newland Maffitt 206 

Sermons in the penitentiary 206 

Admissions on trial 206 

Superannuated preachers 207 

Locations 207 

Death of Hooper Evans 207 

Missionary collections 207 

Revival in Frankfort 208 

Revival in Louisville, at Fourth- 
street 209 

Francis A. Dighton 209 

Revival in Louisville, at Brook- 
street 211 

Letter from Benjamin T. Crouch... 213 
Revival in Hardinsburg Circuit.... 214 

Revival in Brandenburg 214 

Richard Deering 214 

Revival in Hartford Circuit 220 

Joseph G. Ward 220 

Revival in Georgetown 225 

Revivals in Covington 225 

Revival in Falmouth Circuit 227 

Revival at Salem Church, Cvnthi- 

ana Circuit 228 

James C. Crow 228 

Revival in Fleming Circuit 232 

Revival in Augusta 232 

Revival inMaysville 233 

Revival in Millersburg Circuit 233 

Revival in Greenupsburg Circuit.. 233 

Revival in Little Sandy Circuit 233 

Revival in Madison Circuit 234 

Revival in Danville 234 

Revival in Winchester Circuit 234 

Revival in Somerset Circuit 235 

Revival in Bowling Green Circuit.. 237 
Revivals in Hopkinsville Circuit.. 237 

Revival in Princeton Circuit 238 

The unwelcome preacher 238 

The trials of a young preacher 238 

Revivals in Greensburg District ... 243 
Revivals in Barboursville District 245 
The young preacher and Mr. L — 246 
Methodism in Jackson's Purchase 255 



ENTS. 11 



CHAPTER VII. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1838 TO THE CONFERENCE 
OF 1839. 

PAGE 



Conference in Danville 256 

Bishops Waugh and Morris 256 

Sketch of Bishop Waugh 256 

Address on Education 259 

Sermon on Missions 259 

Resolutions from the New England 

Conference 268 

Bishop Waugh on the resolution.. 269 

The Christian Apologist 270 

William Nast 270 

Missionary collections 271 

Admissions on trial 273 

Locations 273 

Death of Thomas H. Gibbons 273 

Bishop Waugh' s sermon 274 

Bishop Morris's sermon 275 

Missionary meeting. 275 

A pleasant incident 275 

Revival in Mount Sterling Circuit.. 277 

Revival in Burlington Circuit 278 

Revival in Fleming Circuit 278 

Revival in Newport 278 

Revival in Louisville 279 

Revival in Hardinsburg Circuit 281 

Revival at Big Spring..'. 281 

Revival at Union Star 282 

Revival at Hardinsburg 282 

Revival at Mount Zion 282 

Revival at Head of Rough Creek.. 282 
Revival at Liberty Camp-ground .. 282 

Revival in Newcastle Circuit 283 

James D. Holding 283 

Moses Levi 285 

Revival in Westport 287 

Revival in Hartford Circuit 2S8 

Richard Holding 288 

Revival in Owensboro 291 

Revival in Hawesville 291 

Revival at New Chapel 291 

Revival at Pleasant Camp-ground 291 
Interesting letter from Benjamin 

T. Crouch 292 

Revival in Shelbyville 293 

Revivals in Shelbyville District 293 

Revival in Greensburg Circuit 294 

Peter Taylor , 294 

Revival in Greenville Circuit 296 

Revival in Hopkinsville Circuit.... 296 
Revival in Madisonville Circuit.... 296 
Revivals in Barboursville District 297 
Jackson's Purchase 297 



CHAPTER VIII. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1839 TO THE CONFERENCE 
OF 1840. 



Conference in Russellville 299 

Bishop Soule 299 

Appointment of Committee on the 
Centenary of Methodism 300 



12 



Contents. 



PASE 

Resolution in reference to the 



course of study 301 

Resolution on temperance 302 

Resolution in reference to the 

Western Historical Society 303 

Resolution on intemperance 304 

Delegates elected to the General 

Conference 305 

Bishop Soule's sermon 306 

An exciting scene 306 

Missionary anniversary 307 

Admissions on trial...." 307 

Locations 3U7 

Superannuated preachers 307 

Death of Absalom D. Fox 307 

Missionary collections 308 

Revival in Augusta 311 

John H. Linn 311 

Daniel S. Barksdale 320 

Revival in Lewis Circuit 321 

Robert Y. McReynolds 322 

Revival in Cynttiiana 323 

Revivals in Lexington District 324 

Revival in Versailles Circuit 325 

John ZS'ewland Mafhtt leaves Ken- 
tucky 325 

Farther account of his life 326 

He dies of a broken heart 329 

Revival at Hughes' Camp-ground, 

near Louisville 332 

Gilby Kelly 333 

Seraiah S. Deering 334 

Sermons on baptism, in Owens- 

boro, by Benjamin T. Crouch 335 

John L. Waller 335 

Revivals in Shelbyville District 336 

Revivals in Bowling Green District 338 

Revival in Princeton Circuit 338 

Revival in Barboursville District.. 339 

John P. Stanfield 339 

Revival in Paducah Circuit 339 

Daniel Mooney 340 

Revival in Wadesboro Circuit 340 

Increase in membership 340 



CHAPTER IX. 

ROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1840 TO THE CONFERENCE 
OF 1841. 



Conference in Bardstown 341 

Bishop Morris 341 

Distinguished visitors 342 

A communication from Bishop 

Smith 343 

Moses M. Henkle 343 

The " Blue Pill " 345 

Excellent sermons 347 

'1 he License Law 347 

Missionary collections 348 

Preachers*' Aid Society 348 

Sermon by William H. Anderson.. 349 

Sermon by Edwin Roberts 349 

Admissions on trial 349 

Locations 350 

Death of George McNelly 350 



j Death of Elijah M. Bosley 352 

Joseph Marsee 356 

Thomas W. Chandler 357 

J Andrew Peace 357 

j Interesting letter from a young 

preacher 358 

j Revivals in Maysville District 366 

I Revival in Covington 367 

Revival in Newport 367 

Aaron Moore 367 

! George W. Merritt 368 

j Revival in Versailles Circuit 370 

I Revival in Winchester Circuit 370 

John W. Riggin 371 

Thomas Bottomley 372 

William Holm an...". 373 

Peter Schmucker 375 

Alanson C. Dewitt 375 

Revival in Hodgenville Circuit 377 

Revival in Litchfield Circuit 377 

Revival in Danville Circuit 377 

John C. C. Thompson 378 

Matthew N. Lasley 379 

Revival in Glasgow Circuit 383 

Joel Peak " 383 

Revival in Russell ville 384 

Revivals in Barboursville District 384 

Revival in Paducah Circuit 385 

Camp-meeting in Wadesboro Cir- 
cuit , 385 

Revivals in Hickman Circuit 386 

Increase in membership 387 



CHAPTER X. 

I FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1841 TO THE CONFERENCE 



OF 1842. 

Conference in Mavsville 388 

No Bishop present 388 

Jonathan Stamper elected Presi- 
dent 388 

The temperance question 389 

Communication from Bishop An- 
drew 390 

Committee on Augusta College 390 

A plan for the improvement of the 

ministry 390 

Preachers' Aid Society 392 

Science Hill Female Academy 392 

Resolution requiring preachers to 
furnish a statement of the date 
and place of their birth, conver- 
sion, and admission on trial 396 

Resolution of thanks to Thomas 

N. Ralston 396 

Resolutions in reference to Au- 
gusta College 397 

American Colonization Society 398 

Resolution in reference to a book 

of memoirs 398 

Transylvania University tendered 

to the Kentucky Conference. 400 

American Bible Societv 406 

Edmund W. Sehon 407 

Admissions on trial 409 



Contents. 



13 



PAGE 

Locations - 409 

Death of Absalom Hunt 410 

Death of Alexander Robinson 410 

Death of Henry N. Vandyke 411 

Death of William D. Minga 413 

•Missionary collections 414 

Jonathan Stamper 414 

William M. Grubbs 414 

Henry E. Pilcher 423 

Walter Shearer 425 

William C. Atmore 425 

William M. Crawford . 428 

Revival in Shannon Circuit 430 

Revival in Covington 430 

Revival in Mount Carmel, Paris 

Circuit 430 

Letter from John James 430 

Letter from Benjamin T. Crouch.. 431 

Revivals in Lexington District 435 

John Collins Hardy 435 

Revival in Mount Sterling Circuit.. 435 

Drummond Welburn 436 

Revival in Athens Circuit 439 

Thomas Demoss 440 

Revival in La Grange Circuit 442 

Revival in Jefferson Circuit 442 

Dorsey's Camp-ground 442 

Hartwell J. Perry 443 

Revival in Shelby Circuit 447 

Nathanael H. Lee 448 

John Sandusky 456 

Revival in Madison Circuit 458 

Old Providence. , 459 

Eli B. Cram 460 

Revival in Russellville 462 

John B. Perrv 462 

Warren M. Pitts 464 

Campbellism , 465 

The Baptist Church 465 

Revival in Elkton 465 

A Campbellite preacher 466 

Sermons on baptism 466 

Elder Robert Williams 467 

A challenge 467 

A debate.'. 467 

Jackson's Purchase 468 

Revival in Paducah 468 

Hickman, Paducah, and Wades- 

boro Circuits 469 

Increase in membership 470 



CHAPTER XI. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1842 TO THE CONFERENCE 

of 1843. 



Conference in Lexington ... 471 

Bishop Wangh present 471 

Albery L. Alderson..... 472 

George S. Savage 474 

Revival at Shannon Church..... 478 

Revival at Sardis 479 

Missionary collections 479 

Death of Peter O. Meeks 479 

Death of Edwin Roberts 479 

Revival in Morganfield Circuit 482 



PAGE 

Revival in Versailles Circuit 482 

Journal of Edwin Roberts 483 

German Mission formed 486 

Revivals in Maysville District 486 

Revival in Germantown Circuit 487 

Revival in Big Sandy Circuit 487 

Revival in Flemingsburg Circuit... 487 

Revival at Covington 487 

Revival at Cynthiana 488 

John Miller .... 488 

Revival in Millersburg Circuit 489 

John G. Bruce 489 

Revivals in Lexington District 489 

Revival in Versailles Circuit ■. 490 

Camp-meeting near Nicholasville. 490 

Revival in Georgetown 491 

Revival in Athens Circuit 491 

Revivals in Burlington Circuit 491 

Revivals in Louisville 491 

Charles B. Parsons 492 

Revival in Shepherdsville Circuit.. 495 

Revival in La Grange Circuit 495 

Samuel D. Baldwin 495 

Samuel L. Robertson 496 

Revival in Owens boro 497 

Revival atBurks's '. 497 

Revival at Pleasant Grove 497 

Seraiah S. Deering 497 

Napoleon B. Lewis 498 

Revivals in Somerset Circuit 502 

Ransom Lancaster 502 

Revival at Richmond 502 

Revival in Madison Circuit 503 

Robinson E. Sidebottom 503 

Elkanah Johnson 504 

Revival at Bowling Green 505 

Revival in Scottsville Circuit 505 

Revivals in Hopkinsville District.. 505 
Revival at Ash Spring camp-meet- 
ing, Logan Circuit 505 

Revival at Pleasant Grove 506 

Revival in Hopkinsville Circuit.... 507 
Revivals in Barboursville District. 507 

Jackson's Purchase 507 

May field Circuit formed 507 

Decrease in membership in Jack- 
son's Purchase 508 

Increase in membership 508 



CHAPTER XII. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CON- 
FERENCE OF 1843 TO THE CONFERENCE 
OF 1844. 



Conference at Louisville 509 

Bishop Morris 509 

Distinguished visitors 509 

The American Bible Society 510 

The Western Christian Advocate 510 

Resolution to promote interests of 

the Western Book Concern 514> 

The Agent and delinquent debtors 511 

The temperance question 511 

The slavery question 512 

Delegates elected to the General 

Conference of 1844 512 



14 Gont: 

PAGE | 

Resolution in reference to a his- 
tory of Methodism in Kentucky.. 512 

Admissions on trial 513 

Locations 513 

Superannuated preachers 513 

Thomas N. Ralston 513 

Revivals in Mount Sterling Circuit.. 515 

Camp-meeting near Perryville 515 

A convincing argument...... 516 

Affecting incident 517 

Death of Richard Corwine 518 

Death of John Denham 518 

Death of Elihu Green 518 

Missionary collections 519 

John Christian Harrison 520 

Revival at Maysville 527 

George B. Poage 527 

Revival at Mount Zion 528 

Campbellism in Brooksville 529 

Exciting scene 529 

Revival in Brooksville 530 

Remarkable conversion 530 

Revival in Augusta 532 

Revival at Minerva 532 

An enraged husband 532 

Revival at Dover 533 

Revival in Germantovvn Circuit....: 533 

Revivals in Shannon Circuit 533 

Revival at Nelson Asbury's..., 533 

Revival in Covington 534 

Revival in Falmouth Circuit 534 



NTS . 



The Lexington District 534 

Transylvania University 534 

Burr H. McCown 535 

William H. Anderson 530 

Revivals in Louisville District 538 

George W. Crumbaugh 538 

George S. Gatewood 539 

Revival at Hardinsburg 540 

Revival in Hawesville Circuit 540 

Revival in Hartford Circuit 540 

Revival in Big Spring Circuit 540 

Morganfield District formed 541 

Learner B. Davison. 541 

Revival in Henderson Circuit 542 

Revival at Smithland 512 

Revival at Eddy vi lie 512 

Revivals in Princeton Circuit 513 

Revivals in Russell ville District ... 543 

Robert Fisk 543 

Revivals in Bowling Green District 544 

Timothy C. Frogge 545 

John S/Magee 545 

Robert G. Gardner 545 

Revivals in Barboursville Circuit.. 516 

Jackson's Purchase 517 

Revival in Hickman Circuit 547 

Revival in Mayfield Circuit 547 

Revivals in Paducah and Wades- 

boro Circuits 547 

Decrease in membership 547 

Review 547 



^V^e stern Cavaliers. 



WESTERN CAVALIERS. 



CHAPTER I. 

FEOM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1832 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1833. 

Tranquil amid alarms, 

It found him on the field, 
A vet' ran, slumb'ring on his arms, 

Beneath his red-cross shield. 
His sword was in his hand, 

Still warm with recent fight, 
Eeady that moment, at command, 

Through rock and steel to smite. 

IT was Wednesday morning, October the seven- 
teenth, one thousand eight hundred and thirty- 
two. The first Western cavalier* still lived. The 
privations he had suffered, the hardships he had 
encountered, and the labor he had performed, in the 
service to which he had pledged his life, had so far 



* Benjamin Ogden. 



(17) 



IS 



Western Cavaliers. 



impaired his once robust constitution that he was 
unable longer to lead to victory, or to mingle in the 
din of battle. His comrades-in-arms, who. had 
caught the inspiration of his ardor, and followed 
his fortunes amid the rains of summer, the frosts 
of autumn, and the snows of winter, on many a 
hard-fought field, were sleeping their last sleep in 
the bivouac of the dead, or were patiently await- 
ing the summons that would release them from a 
conflict in which they could not be active partici- 
pants. He was a brave cavalier. For forty years 
he had been in the thickest of the fight, the gallant 
leader of a band of men as valiant as ever un- 
sheathed the sword of truth; but for five years his 
name had stood on the retired list, honored for 
deeds of chivalry and daring. His keen Jerusalem 
blade still hung at his side. " I wish to die," he 
said, " having the whole armor on, contending like 
a good soldier for the prize." The frosts of nearly 
seventy winters had bleached his brow, and his 
trembling and unsteady step indicated, too plainly, 
that he must soon receive his furlough, and enter 
upon eternal rest. His zeal, however, was una- 
bated; and the abiding interest he felt in the cause 
for which he had battled so long evinced itself in 
the fire that flashed from his eye whenever his 
fellow-soldiers buckled on their armor for the fight, 
or returned from the ensanguined field laden with 
the spoils of victory. 

To arrange for a year's campaign, more than one 
hundred men had met in the beautiful village of 
Harrodsburg, in the State of Kentucky. Some of 



Western Cavaliers. 



19 



tli em were veterans. For many years they liad 
bared their bosoms to the storm, and been familiar 
with the shock of battle. They had often felt the 
clash'of arms, and joined in the shouts of victory. 
They knew what privations meant. Ever true to 
the ensign beneath whose folds they fought, they 
shunned no danger, and avoided no suffering. 
Their names were Benjamin Ogden, J ohn Littlejohn, 
James Ward, Barnabas McHenry, Clement L. Clif- 
ton, John Ray, Zadok B. Thaxton, Henry McDaniel, 
Esau Simmons, Blatchley C. Wood, Luke P. Allen, 
William Atherton, Samuel Helms, Joseph B. Power, 
Moses Clampit, and Absalom Hunt. "William 
G-unn, Richard Corwine, George W. Taylor, Benja- 
min T. Crouch, John Johnson, and Marcus Lindsey 
were also present. They were in the prime of life. 
Their prowess, their faithful service, their aptitude 
and devotion to the cause which had been ennobled 
by their valor, had suggested them as persons well 
qualified to lead to battle and to victory. 

In this company there were younger men. They, 
too, were inured to hardship. On some of them 
might have been seen the scars received on many a 
hard-fought field — on all, the marks of faithful serv- 
ice. " They counted not their lives dear," so that 
they might be good soldiers of the cross, and 
achieve success. They were the rank and file. 

There were those, too, who had come to enter the 
ranks. They were twelve in number. Their names 
were Lorenzo D. Parker, John Xevius, Joseph W. 
Shultz, Richard Deering, William Gr. Bowman, 
Thomas S. Davis, Foster H. Blades, Her rington 



20 



Western Cavaliers. 



Stevens, Richard Holding, James H. Brooking, 
William McMahon, and Grilby Kelly. They were 
in the rosy morn of life. Some of them had 
already encountered hardships, while others had 
never confronted danger. One of them was a 
smooth-faced boy, and more than one had not 
reached the years of manhood. 

The life upon which these young men were en- 
tering was not one of pleasure or of ease. They 
were not to tread the path that leads to fortune or 
to fame. If roses bloomed along their route, they had 
no time to gather them. They were to face oppo- 
sition, and to become accustomed to hardship; or, 
if unequal to the privations, sacrifices, and duties 
incident to the life of toil that lay before them, 
they must retire from the struggle. Others were 
present, whose names will adorn these pages, whose 
deeds of chivalry and daring shook the empire of 
darkness to its center, and who, under God, recov- 
ered from the grasp of Satan many who became 
valiant soldiers of the cross. 

John Emory was a gallant leader — as prompt in 
action as he was wise in counsel. To him had 
been assigned the command of the Wescern division 
of the work. His presence at the Harrodsburg 
Conference contributed much to the advancement 
of the cause to which these men had pledged their 
energies and their lives. Not only in his private 
counsels, but in his public ministrations, he won 
upon the hearts and the affections of all. His 
sound judgment, his polished manner, his com- 
manding presence, his thorough qualification for 



Western Cavaliers. 



21 



the duties that devolved upon him, inspired a confi- 
dence which was the harbinger of success.* 

The business which had called these men to- 
gether was of no ordinary importance. Their 
cause was a common one. They had met to exam- 
ine, with the most scrutinizing care, into the con- 
duct of each cavalier during the year which was 
closing, to bestow the proper meed of praise on 
those who had been good and true, and to censure 
any who had not come up to the full measure of 
duty. They had assembled to recount their suffer- 
ings, to tell of their conflicts, to rejoice in the vic- 
tories they had achieved, and to devise plans for 
future conquests and successes. 

A few years before and Kentucky was a wilder- 

* Bishop Emory entered the itinerant ministry in 1810, in 
the Philadelphia Conference. Devoted to the work to which 
he was divinely called, and favored with an intellect of the 
highest order, he soon attained to eminence in the Church. 
In 1820 he was chosen by the General Conference to visit the 
British Conference as the representative of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church in the United States. In 1824 he was 
elected Assistant Agent, and in 1828 he was chosen by the 
suffrages of his brethren as the Senior Agent, of the Book 
Concern in New York. On the 22d of May, 1832, James 0. 
Andrew and John Emory were elected to the office of Bishop 
— the former having received, on the first ballot, one hundred 
and forty votes, and the latter one hundred and thirty-five — ■ 
two hundred and twenty-three votes having been cast. The 
career of Mr. Emory as a Bishop was brief. On Wednesday, 
the 16th of December, 1835, he left his home in the morning 
to go to Baltimore, on business connected with the Church. 
On his way he was thrown from his carriage, and received a 
wound in his head, of which he died about seven o'clock in 
the evening of the same day. 



22 



Western Cavaliers. 



ness, wrapped in moral night, on which fell scarcely 
a single ray of hope. Through privations, suf- 
fering, and want, brave cavaliers had toiled and 
battled until the powers of darkness trembled, and 
victory was perching on the standard of the cross. 
Much, however, was yet to be achieved. Sin, in 
hideous forms, walked with high and proud steps 
through the land; infidelity, with its brazen front, 
defied the power of truth. The strongholds of vice 
must be attacked, its very citadel must be demol- 
ished, and light, and truth, and happiness must 
pervade this grand Commonwealth, until the wil- 
derness and solitary place shall be glad, and the 
desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose. 

To accomplish the task for which they had con- 
vened on this occasion required wisdom and pru- 
dence, no less than skill and courage. Bishop Emory 
was in the chair, and William Adams was Secretary. 
The roll was called, and all responded to their 
names, with the exception of Franklin Davis, who 
had fallen during the year.* 

To institute a rigid examination into the labors 
and conduct of these men for the previous year was 
one of the first duties to be performed. The task 
was a delicate one. On one hand, it was important 
that no cavalier should be charged unjustly with 
either a want of promptness or fidelity in the per- 



~*At the session of the Kentucky Conference of 1830, 
Franklin Davis was admitted on trial, and appointed to the 
Cynthiana Circuit; in 1831 he was the junior preacher on 
Breckinridge Circuit, and died during the year. No memoir 
of him was furnished. 



Western Cavaliers. 



23 



formance of the duties assigned him; and on the 
other, that the cause for which they were bat- 
tling should not suffer from either the inefficiency 
or negligence of those to whom it had been in- 
trusted.* 

In the examination of character it was necessary 
to ascertain whether any who had been on the re- 
tired list, from either the infirmities of age or 
sickness, were able to reenter the effective serv- 
ice. We have already mentioned the names of 

* The Kentucky Conference, at this time, was divided into 
six Districts, each one under the supervision of a Presiding 
Elder. The Districts embraced ten or twelve stations, each 
of which was occupied by from one to three preachers. No 
body of preachers in the world passes through an ordeal so 
rigid as do Methodist itinerant preachers in the examination 
of their characters, which takes place once a year. Not only 
the propriety, but the importance, of this will be apparent 
when it is known that our preachers are appointed to fields 
of labor where they are strangers, the people to whom they 
are sent not knowing any thing of them only that they have 
been indorsed by the Annual Conference. When the name 
of a District is called, the question is asked by the Bishop 
whether there is any thing against the Presiding Elder. This 
question embraces not only his moral character, but his effi- 
ciency and the faithful performance of the duties of his office. 
The preachers of his District are expected faithfully to repre- 
sent him, when, after the approval on the part of the Confer- 
ence of his character and administration, the name of each 
preacher in his District is called, and his character examined. 
The following were the names of the Districts and of the 
Presiding Elders at this time: Kentucky District, William 
Gunn; Augusta District, Richard Corwine; Rockcastle Dis- 
trict, George W. Taylor; Ohio District, Benjamin T. Crouch; 
Green River District, John Johnson; Cumberland District, 
^larcus Lindsey. 



24 



Western Cavaliers. 



those who had been excused from labor the previous 
year. 

The name of Benjamin Ogden was first called. 
There is nothing more trying to a soldier, whose 
courage never has been called in question, than to 
listen to strains of martial music inviting his com- 
rades to arms and to duty, and he not be able to 
engage in the strife. To hear the sound of the fife 
and drum, and to see the ensign beneath whose 
folds he had fought and conquered thrown to the 
breeze, and yet not to be allowed to buckle on his 
armor, is a position that no brave man can envy. 
The name of Benjamin Ogden was the synonym of 
courage and of suffering. No cavalier had preceded 
him in the West. He had alone traversed its wilds, 
had swum its rivers, had encountered difficulty and 
danger, and had met and conquered many a foe; and 
then on the green-carpeted earth had laid him down 
to rest and sleep, with no covering save the deep 
blue sky. When, in 1786, just forty-six years be- 
fore, he came to the West, but few rallied to his 
standard; the sound of his bugle-horn arrested here 
and there a solitary wanderer. He was young, 
active, and strong, capable of endurance, and willing 
to perform the arduous duties assigned him. Old 
age, however, had crept upon him, until he could 
only watch the camp-fires, and join in the shout of 
victory; still there is much to gladden his heart, 
and cheer his declining years. One hundred and 
thirteen brave and gallant men are contending for 
the truth where he had stood alone, while twenty- 
six thousand nine hundred and eighty-seven men 



Western Cavaliers. 



25 



and women adhered to the cause to which his life 
had been devoted. 

"Nothing against Benjamin Ogden," was the 
prompt response of the officer in charge of the Dis- 
trict in which he resided. "For many years he has 
gone in and out among us, occupying the front 
ranks, and leading to battle and to victory. Al- 
though no longer able to perform effective service, 
yet his devotion to the cause and his bright example 
are exerting an influence little less than did the he- 
roic labors he performed in the strength of his man- 
hood/' was the testimony in his favor. His char- 
acter was passed. 

Another name was called. "Is there any thing 
against Barnabas McHenry?" Mr. McHenry came 
to the West in 1789, three years later than Mr. 
Osfden. At the time he entered the service in Ken- 
tucky there were only five cavaliers besides himself 
to occupy the entire State — Francis Poythress, James 
Haw, Wilson Lee, and Peter Massie, had preceded 
him, while the name of Stephen Brooks appears at 
the same time with his own. 

Among the noble men who battled for the cause 
of God at this early day in the West, no one bore 
himself more gallantly than did Barnabas McHenry. 
Panoplied with the truth as it is in Jesus, familiar 
with the doctrines of which he was a fearless and 
able advocate, his sword gleamed in the sunlight on 
almost every hill-top and in every valley in Central 
Kentucky. The days of his active service, however, 
had been numbered; yet, unwilling to repose amid 
the trophies he had won, or the laurels he had gath- 



26 



Western Cavaliers. 



ered on so many hard-fought fields, we find him 
contributing his remaining energies to the ad- 
vancement and progress of the cause which 
had been the cherished object of his life. "He 
can no longer bear the exposure of the field, nor 
even stand on guard; but there beats no truer 
heart than his/' was the answer of the officer in 
charge. 

The names of John Littlejohn, James Ward, 
John Ray, Zadoc B. Thaxton, Henry McDaniel, 
Samuel Helms, Absalom Hunt, Blatchley C. Wood, 
Esau Simmons, Luke P. Allen, Clement L. Clif- 
ton, William Atherton, Moses B. Clampit, and Jo- 
seph B. Power were called, and their characters 
approved. 

Not one of these tried veterans was able to 
reenter the service. The repose from labor that 
had been granted them during the previous year 
had failed to restore their impaired health or to 
prepare them to engage in the campaign for the 
coming season. 

As the name of each cavalier was called, his char- 
acter passed in review before his fellow-soldiers, 
meeting with approval. Of the number who had 
gone out one year before, with " sword in hand and 
armor on," not one had deserted his post or dishon- 
ored his flag. Whether in the crowded city or in 
the solitary waste, amid mountain fastnesses or in 
miasmatic swamps, in palaces of wealth or the cab- 
ins of the poor, none had betrayed the noble cause, 
or been untrue to the colors beneath which he had 
enrolled. Amid snow, and hail, and storm, they 



Western Cavaliers. 



27 



had held aloft their banner, bearing the inspiring 
inscription, " Behold the Lamb of God ! " They had 
thrown its folds to the breeze, and many a way- 
farer, attracted by the shelter it offered from the 
storm, sought beneath it a haven and a rest. It is 
true that four other names were placed on the re- 
tired list because of failing health, End six with- 
drew from the cavalry service to enter another 
department/ 1 " but no want of fidelity stained the 
escutcheon of a single cavalier. 

The Conference of 1832 was in several respects 
of greater importance than any of its predecessors. 
A more decided stand was taken against the use of 
all intoxicating liquors as a beverage; the Bible, 
Tract, and Sunday - school societies received a 
stronger indorsement than ever before; a resolution 
was passed looking to the inauguration of the Mis- 
sionary Society of the Kentucky Conference; f and 
a more stringent rule was adopted in reference to 

*At this Conference Thomas G. Reese, James L. Greenup, 
Wilson S. McMurry, Elijah Knox, Alexander H. Stemmons, 
and John W. F. Tevis located. 

f The following resolution was adopted by the Conference: 
11 Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, That the Presid- 
ing Elder and stationed preacher of Louisville Station be 
directed to use their influence to form a Conference Mission- 
ary Society in that place, auxiliary to the Missionary Society 
of the M. E. Church at New York, and the Presiding Elders 
and preachers in charge be required to use their utmost efforts 
to form societies auxiliary to said Conference Society; and 
that, as soon as said society shall have been formed, it shall 
be the duty of the Presiding Elder or preacher in charge to 
furnish the same for publication in The Christian Advocate and 
Journal. 11 



28 



Western Cavaliers. 



the support of the superannuated preachers, and 
widows and orphans. 

The question of education also occupied a prom- 
inent place in the deliberations of the Conference. 
Not only Augusta College, at that time under the 
joint supervision and patronage of the Kentucky 
and Ohio Conferences, but Science Hill Female 
Academy, at Shelbyville, with Mrs. Julia A. Tevis 
at its head, and the Bardstown Female Academy, 
at Bardstown, received special consideration. An 
Agent was also appointed in behalf of the Coloni- 
zation Society. 

On Saturday morning, the fourth day of the Con- 
ference, the venerable Bishop McKendree appeared 
in the Conference-room. His once erect form was 
bending beneath the weight of labor and of years. 
He made an impressive address to the Conference, 
recommending that no departure from the old land- 
marks of Methodism be entertained for a moment, 
and that constant attention to the doctrines and 
discipline of the Church be observed. He then 
prayed with the brethren, after which he bade 
them an affectionate farewell. It was his valedic- 
tory. 

The entire session was distinguished by the most 
perfect harmony, each endeavoring to promote the 
happiness of all others. 

It was late on Tuesday evening, the 23d, when 
the Conference adjourned. 

After an appropriate address by Bishop Emory, 
the following appointments for the Conference-year 
were announced: 



Western Cavaliers. 29 



LEXINGTON DISTRICT. 
William Gunn, P. .E.- 
Lexington, J. James. 
Lexington Circuit, S. Veach, W. Phil- 
ips. 

Frankfort, H. H. Kavanaugh. 

Cynthiana, G. W. Brush. 

Cynthiana Circuit, A. Woolliscroft, L. 

D. Parker. 
Burlington, J. C. Crow. 
Port William, J. King. 
Newport and Covington, W. P. Mc- 

Knight. 
Falmouth, J. Whi taker. 

G. C. Light, Agent for American Colo- 
nization Society. 

AUGUSTA DISTRICT. 
Richard Tydings, P. E. 

Maysville, M. L. Eades. 
Germantown, F. Landrum, one to be 

supplied. 
Fleming, R. Corwine, R. Deering. 
Hinckstone, D. H. Tevis, G. Kelly. 
Lewis, T. Waring. 

Little Sandy, R. Bird, J. H. Brooking. 
Big Sandy, W. S. Evans, J. D. Bar- 
net. 

Highland, W. Cundiff. 
J. Tomlinson, President of the Augus- 
ta College. 

H. B. Bascom and B. H. McCown, 
Professors in Augusta College. 

HARRODSBURG DISTRICT. 
William Adams, P. E. 

Mount Sterling, H. S. Duke. 

Mount Sterling Circuit, J. F. Young, 

one to be supplied. 
Madison, J. Beatty, R. Holding. 
Danville and Harrodsburg, W. Hol- 

man. 

Mount Vernon, R. J. Dungan. 
Cumberland, C. Babbit, one to be sup- 
plied. 

Winchester, C. M. Holliday, J. Nevius. 
Danville Circuit, M. Jamieson, M. M. 
Cosby. 



LOUISVILLE DISTRICT. 
Benjamin T. Crouch, P. E. 

Shelby, S. Harrison, T, P. Farmer. 

Shelbyville and Brick Chapel, M. 
Lindsey. 

Taylorsville, J. Williams. 

Jefferson, I. Collard, J. W. Schultz. 

Louisville, E. Stevenson, J. Stam- 
per. 

Breckinridge, W. Helm, F. H. Blades. 
Yellow Banks, T. P. Vance. 
Hartford, R. Y. McReynolds, S. Har- 
ber, sup. 

Newcastle, J. Marsee, L. Campbell. 
J. Tevis, Superintendent of Shelby- 
ville Female Academy. 

HOPKINSVILLE DISTRICT. 
John Johnson, P. E. 

Bowling Green, T. H. Cropper. 

Bowling Green Circuit, J. G. Ward, R. 
F. Turner. 

Russell ville, H. J, Evans. 

Logan, D. S. Capell, H. Stevens. 

Hopkinsville, T. W. Chandler. 

Christian, N. G. Berryman, J. Red- 
man. 

Greenville, I. Malone, E. Sutton. 
Livingston, W. B. Landrum, one to be 

supplied. 
Henderson, A. Long, B. Farris. 

GREEN3BURG DISTRICT 
George W. Taylor, P. E. 

Glasgow, T. H. Gibbons, W. McMa- 
hon. 

Elizabeth, B. Henry, W. G. Bowman. 
Bardstown and Elizabethtown, W. 
Fao-o-. 

Salt River, S. Lee, H. Evans. 

Lebanon, J. Sandusky, T. Hall. 

Green River, H. Crews, II. J. Perry, 
T. Lasley, sup. 

Wayne, J. Sutton, one to be sup- 
plied. 

Somerset, J. C. Harrison, T. S. Davis. 
W. M. McReynolds, Superintendent of 
Bardstown Female Academy. 



30 



Western Cavaliers. 



In a Conference of Methodist preachers there is 
a degree of moral heroism nowhere else to be found. 
A body of ministers, whose wives and children are 
to them dearer than life, voluntarily surrendering 
their right to select their fields of ministerial labor, 
referring the whole question of their appointments 
to the Bishop and his council, and cheerfully going 
wherever they are sent, whether to city or country 
— nearly always among strangers, and often with a 
poor prospect of support — affords a sublime " spec- 
tacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men." 

It will be seen from the above list that the Ken- 
tucky Conference contained at this date six Dis- 
tricts, embracing fifty - seven separate charges, to 
which eighty-four preachers were appointed.* Be- 
sides these, George C. Light was appointed Agent 
for the American Colonization Society; John Tevis, 
Superintendent of Shelby ville Female Academy; 
William M. McEeynolds, Superintendent of Bards- 
town Female Academy; and Joseph S. Tomlinson, 
Henry B. Bascom, and Burr H. McCown, the first 
as President, and the other two as Professors, in 
Augusta College — making a total of ninety preach- 
ers in the effective work, including Thomas Lasley 
and Stephen Harber, who were supernumeraries. 
In addition to these, there were nineteen preachers 
on the superannuated list, making a grand total of 
one hundred and nine. 

At this early period the Kentucky Conference 
could boast of a constellation of great men in the 
ministry whose peers have seldom been found in 
-The six Districts are embraced in this calculation. 



Western Cavaliers. 



31 



any body — their superiors, never. In charge of 
the Districts were the strong-minded Gunn, the 
sweet-spirited Tydings, the unostentatious Adams, 
Crouch the logician, the eccentric yet gifted 
Johnson, and the plain, pure-hearted Taylor; while 
Bascom, Tomlinson, McCown, Kavanaugh, Light, 
Eades, Landrum, Corwine, Duke, Holliday, Linclsey, 
Jamieson, Collarcl, Stevenson, Stamper, and Tevis, 
would have adorned any pulpit in any age. 

On Wednesday morning, October the 24th, the 
members of the Conference took leave of the fam- 
ilies where they had been hospitably entertained, 
and, mounting their horses, started to their new 
fields of labor. How diversified the stations to 
which they were appointed! Some were sent to 
the crowded city, some to the pleasant village, some 
to beautiful rural districts, some to large and 
laborious circuits, and some to poor and humble 
mountaineers — but all where sinners lived, to whom 
the tidings of a Redeemer's love must be pro- 
claimed. 

The appearance of Asiatic cholera in the Old 
World excited fearful apprehensions in the minds 
of thousands in this country, and, as it made its 
advances toward the United States, the stories of the 
desolation that marked its path made many a face 
turn pale. In the autumn of 1832 it reached the 
city of Louisville, and, while the Conference was 
still in session, bore hundreds to the grave. This 
sad reality made a profound impression on the 
minds of the members of the Conference, and they 
recognized it by the passage of a suitable preamble 



32 



Western Cavaliers. 



and resolutions,* observed the Saturday of their 
session as a day of humiliation and prayer, and 
appointed Jonathan Stamper to deliver a sermon 
on the occasion. f 

In taking leave of each other, many felt that they 
would not all meet again on this side the last river, 
but contemplated a happier meeting in a world of 
light, and love, and joy. 

The year upon which these men were entering 
was destined to be a year of suffering and of toil. 

* Whereas, the Asiatic cholera has at length visited our 
borders, and is now carrying forward the work of death in 
one of our most populous cities, as well as in other important 
sections of our work ; and whereas, we regard it as a dispen- 
sation of Divine justice in consequence of our national and 
individual sins ; and believing it to be our duty, in all such 
visitations, to humble ourselves before the Most High, there- 
fore, 

Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, That we will 
observe Saturday, the 19th inst., as a day of humiliation and 
prayer, and that Brother Stamper be requested to deliver a 
discourse on the occasion, at three o'clock, in the M. E. 
Church in this place. 

And be it farther resolved, That we set apart, as a day of 
solemn fasting and prayer throughout the bounds of this 
Conference, the first Friday in November next, and that the 
members of this Conference be directed to use their utmost 
efforts to have the above resolution carried into effect in their 
respective circuits and stations. 

f At this Conference Bishop Emory proposed to send Marcus 
Lindsey to Louisville. Mr. Lindsey expressed a preference 
for Shelbyville, and offered as the reason that he had strange 
apprehension in reference to the cholera, and that Shelby- 
ville had not been, and probably would not be, visited by it. 
Shelbyville was terribly scourged in 1833. 



Western Cavaliers. 



33 



The fearful cholera, whose presence had created so 
much alarm, and was still carrying desolation to 
many a home, might subside, but in tenfold fury it 
would return the following season, and shroud in 
gloom hamlet, village, and city; Churches in many 
places would be more than decimated, and men who 
for years had led the Israel of God to victory would 
fall victims to the scourge. At no Conference had 
brethren separated with sadder hearts. 

This year, however, so replete with suffering and 
loss, would be crowned with extraordinary revivals 
of religion, without a parallel in the annals of the 
past. 

In entering upon a new field of ministerial labor 
a Methodist preacher enjoys an advantage unknown 
to the pastorate of any other Church. Indorsed by 
the Conference of which he is a member, it is but 
seldom that he meets with other than a kind recep- 
tion among the people whom he is appointed to 
serve. He may be young and without experience, 
or he may be a stranger, yet he finds a warm 
place in the hearts of the people of his charge; and 
hence he is at once prepared to devise plans for suc- 
cess in his high and holy calling. 

The first round of quarterly meetings in the sev- 
eral Districts evinced more than an ordinary con- 
cern on the subject of religion. An awakening 
was felt in several sections of the work, and in some 
of the charges the gentle shower which precedes 
the full rain had fallen upon the Church. In the 
Lexington District, the Church in Lexington was 
considerably revived under the ministry of John 
2* 



34 



We stern Cavaliers. 



James, a zealous preacher of the gospel, while the 
Church iu Frankfort, of which Hubbard H. Kava- 
naugh was pastor, enjoyed some refreshing showers 
of grace. In the Augusta District, the Church in 
Maysville had some prosperity, through the labors 
of Martin L. Eades, while Mount Sterling and Har- 
rodsburg, in the Harroclsburg District — the former 
with Henry S. Duke in charge, and the latter served 
by William Holman — were favored with interesting 
revivals of religion. 

The Church in Louisville, in the Louisville Dis- 
trict, to which Edward Stevenson and Jonathan 
Stamper had been appointed, realized times of re- 
freshing from the presence of the Lord, while, in 
the Hopkinsville District, the labors of Henry J. 
Evans, the faithful pastor at Eussellville, were great- 
ly blessed. 

Besides these, occasional showers of grace were 
falling upon the Church in different places — indices 
of a wide-spread revival of the work of God. The 
spring of 1833 opened favorably. All along the 
line the Presiding Elders had sounded the tocsin, 
and every man was at his post. Men and women 
in every community were reflecting seriously upon 
the subject of religion, and the impression obtained 
that there would be, throughout the Commonwealth, 
a general revival of the work of God. In the sev- 
eral Districts revivals broke out so nearly at the 
same time that it would be difficult to decide where 
the work began. In the Lexington, Cynthiana, and 
Port William Circuits, in the Lexington District ; 
in the Germantown, Hinckstone, Fleming, and Lit- 



Western Cavaliers. 



35 



tie Sandy Circuits, in the Augusta District; in the 
Madison, Danville, Cumberland, Winchester, and 
Mount Sterling Circuits, in the Harrodsburg Dis- 
trict; in the Breckinridge and Newcastle Circuits, in 
the Louisville District; in the Henderson, Christian, 
Logan, and Bowling Green Circuits, in the Hop- 
kinsville District; and. in the Glasgow, Salt River, 
Lebanon, and Green River Circuits, in the Greens- 
burg District, the work began early in the spring, 
and continued throughout the summer. 

In several other charges, although favored with no 
general revival of religion, sinners were awakened 
and converted to God. Late in the spring of 1838 the 
cholera reappeared, and in the most malignant form 
visited many portions of the State. Louisville, 
Shelbyville, Cynthiana, and many other towns, were 
almost depopulated by this fearful scourge. It 
swept through the country, and many a home, in 
the morning cheerful and happy, was clad in mourn- 
ing before the stars shone out. 

In Cynthiana, several of the best members of the 
Church were stricken down, yet, under the pastoral 
care of George W. Brush, a young preacher, the 
membership increased. 

In the Big Sandy Circuit, in the Augusta Dis- 
trict; in the Greenville and Livingston Circuits, 
and Bowling Green Station, in the Hopkinsville 
District; and in the Wayne and Somerset Circuits, 
in the Greensburg District, many were added to the 
Church. Indeed, so general were the revivals dur- 
ing this year that only seven charges in the Confer- 
ence failed to report an increase in the membership 



36 



Western Cavaliers. 



— the Mount Vernon Circuit, in the Harrodsburg 
District; the Shelby, the Yellow Banks, and the 
Hartford Circuits, in the Louisville District; the 
Hopkinsville Station, in the Hopkinsville District; 
and the Elizabeth Circuit, in the Greensburg Dis- 
trict. From the Shelby ville and Brick Chapel Sta- 
tion no change is reported in the membership from 
the previous year.* 

It is proper to state that as early as 1820 mis- 
sionaries were appointed from the Tennessee Con- 
ference to that portion of Kentucky known as 
Jackson's Purchase. Hezekiah Holland and Lewis 
Garrett, men distinguished for their piety and zeal, 
were the first Methodist preachers to bear the 
tidings of a Redeemer's love to that section of the 
State. Mr. Holland remained in the itinerant ranks 
but a short time. The exposure and arduous duties 
of his office were more than equal to his strength; 
hence, in 1822, he located. During the brief 
period of his ministry he was not only faithful, but 
eminently successful. Lewis Garrett had preceded 
his colleague in the Conference two years, fie had 
been identified with the fortunes of Methodism in 
Kentucky at an earlier period, having been ap- 
pointed to the Cumberland Circuit, where he re- 
mained for two years. In entering upon their work 
in the Purchase, difficulties such as are common in 
new and sparsely- settled communities confronted 
them. Without church-edifices of even the plainest 

*The pastor of the Church died during the year, and, no 
report having been furnished the Conference, the statistics 
of the former year were recorded. 



Western Cavaliers. 



37 



structure, they carried the gospel to the homes of 
the people, and reported at the ensuing Conference 
one hundred and forty-two white and three colored 
members. 

In this new and interesting field, in which Meth- 
odism was destined to act so prominent a part, these 
faithful men were succeeded by William B. Carpen- 
ter, a young man just admitted on trial, who was 
appointed to the Hickman, and Benjamin T. Crouch 
and Lewis Parker to the Sandy River Circuit, lying 
partly in Kentucky and partly in Tennessee — Mr. 
Garrett presiding over the District. Considerable 
success crowned the labors of Mr. Carpenter; while 
on the Sandy River Circuit, under the ministry of 
Benjamin T. Crouch and Lewis Parker, many were 
converted and added to the Church.* 

John Kesterson became an itinerant in 1818, and 
traveled that year the Tuskaloosa Circuit, with the 
gifted Thomas D. Porter as his Presiding Elder. 
In 1819 his field of labor was the Lee Circuit, on 
the waters of the Holston: in 1820 he was appointed 
to the Sequatchie Valley Circuit, under the leader- 
ship of the eccentric Axley; and in 1821, with 
John Tevis as his Presiding Elder, he traveled the 
Ashe Circuit, in the Holston District. Faithful in 
these several fields of labor, in 1822, with Nathan 
L. 2sTorvall for his colleague, he was sent to the 

*In his diary, in possession of the author, Mr. Crouch says, 
referring to the year he spent on Sandy River Circuit: "Sev- 
eral new Societies were organized, classes established the 
previous year revived and increased, two large circuits formed, 
and the whole work left in a prosperous condition." 



38 



Western Cavaliers. 



Hickman Circuit. His colleague, Mr. Norvall, had 
been an itinerant but one year, and had traveled the 
Richland Circuit. At the following Conference we 
have no report from the Hickman Circuit, hence 
we are unable to give the result of the labors of 
these men. 

At the Conference of 1823 the name of the Hick- 
man Circuit disappears from the roll, having prob- 
ably been connected with some other charge. 

In 1824, the veteran Ogclen was appointed from 
the Kentucky Conference to the Tennessee Mission, 
which embraced the most, if not all, of Jackson's 
Purchase, in both Tennessee and Kentucky. At 
the close of the year Mr. Ogclen reported one hun- 
dred and seventy -five white and five colored members. 
At the session of the Kentucky Conference in 1825 
Green River District included Jackson's Purchase. 
At the same time the name v of the Tennessee Mis- 
sion disappears from the list, and is substituted by 
the Clarke's River Circuit. Thomas A. Morris, after- 
ward Bishop Morris, had charge of the District, and 
John S. Barger and James L. Greenup were the 
preachers. At the Conference of 1826 two hundred 
and eighty-eight white and six colored members were 
reported. Bishop Morris* says: 

"In 1825 my District embraced that part of Ken- 
tucky west of the Tennessee River, which was then 
all in one circuit, called Clarke's River, of which 
John S. Barger was preacher in charge. We were 
not the first on that ground after the Indians left. 
Brothers Crouch and Parker had been there form- 



* " Miscellany," pp. 241-244. 



Western Cavaliers. 



39 



ing a circuit the year previous; and if they would 
speak out they could relate scenes of suffering suf- 
ficient to cause the ears of some readers to tingle. 
Still, when they went, the settlements were c few 
and far between/ and frequently without any road, 
or even path, from one to the other. When we 
wished to visit a neighborhood fifteen or twenty 
miles distant, we ascertained as near as we could 
the general course, and struck off" through the 
woods without road or guide. If the sun was visi- 
ble, we steered by him, and if not, by a pocket- 
compass; and if a creek — -too deep to ford — ob- 
structed our course, we had our choice to swim or 
stay on our own side, having neither boat, bridge, 
nor canoe. Of the manner of overcoming these 
obstructions I will here furnish an example or two. 

"At the close of a camp quarterly-meeting in 
Clarke's River Circuit, July, 1826, the small streams 
were much swollen by reason of heavy rains. Soon 
after leaving the camp we had to encounter a small 
stream, which was usually some three rods wide, 
but at that time spread over the banks and much of 
the adjoining low ground. However, we were told 
that by going to the Shallow Ford, above the forks, 
we could probably ride across without losing bot- 
tom; but, where we expected a shallow ford, we 
found a sheet of water about a hundred yards wide, 
it having overflowed its banks, with a rapid current 
in the middle. Our company consisted of George 
Richardson, John S. Barger, Alexander H. Stem- 
mons, another young preacher whose name I have 
forgotten, and the writer. We were all sound, ex- 



40 



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cept myself. I was sick, had been so for five or six 
clays, and was much more fit to be in bed than on 
horseback. In consequence of this circumstance 
the company objected to my swimming, lest the 
wetting, after taking medicine, might prove injuri- 
ous; but, by riding in mid -sides to the horse, I 
gained the large end of a great tree, which had 
been cut down so as to fall across the main channel 
just above the ford, for a temporary foot-bridge. 
Here they deposited me and the baggage till they 
should swim the horses over. In the meantime, 
others came up from the meeting, forming a com- 
pany of some fifteen in all. The coming-out place 
lay rather up stream from us, and just below it, we 
were told, the bank, then under water, was too 
steep for the horses to rise when they should strike 
bottom. To avoid this, and procure a sloping bank 
to rise on, they selected a place below, where the 
bluff changed sides ; so that after riding in till the 
horse was nearly covered, and arriving at the main 
channel, he suddenly and unexpectedly to himself, 
though not to his rider, stepped over a precipice, 
perhaps ten feet high, into a sweeping current, 
where horse and rider were violently immerged, but 
soon emerged some distance from where they first 
disappeared, and presently made safe landing. In 
this way the young brethren conveyed their own 
horses over, after which Richardson and Stemmons 
rode for the whole company, securing one horse and 
swimming back for another, making several trips 
each. This done, Richardson led me over the chan- 
nel on the log; and leaving still between us and the 



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41 



dry ground a sheet of water some thirty yards 
wide, and three feet deep, he deliberately stepped 
in, took me upon his shoulder, and, notwithstand- 
ing much brush and drift-wood were on the way, 
placed me safely on solid ground. The whole was 
accomplished in a few minutes. Here we parted 
with all but our own company, with whom we first 
started from camp ; and, leaving the Shalloiv Ford, 
our way was clear before us to the next branch of 
the same stream, only a few miles distant. 

"Our second crossing was like to prove more dif- 
ficult than the first, having an equally rapid stream, 
without the advantage of any log. Having ap- 
pointments ahead, it was important to get on some- 
how or other; and, after a short consultation, it was 
thought best, on account of my condition, to head 
the stream, or at least go far enough up to ford. 
This being agreed on, we made the attempt, but 
were so much embarrassed by quicksand, especially 
where the ground had been overflowed, that we 
soon became weary of it, and determined to cross, 
if possible. Finding a place where the banks were 
dry on both sides, the water being there confined 
within its usual channel, we dismounted, and were 
consulting about the mode of crossing, when Stem- 
mons concluded it was time to execute as well as 
plan. Fixing his large, laughing, blue eye on a 
tall, slim hickory, growing on our side of the creek, 
he deliberately began to ascend, which he did almost 
as easily and rapidly as a wild bear would climb a 
chestnut-tree in search of nuts. When he had left 
the ground about forty feet below him, and arrived 



42 



Western Cavaliers. 



where the sapling had scarce strength to support 
him, he turned ou the side next to the stream, held 
on with his hands, letting his feet swing clear, and 
his weight brought the top down on the other side, 
and, with the assistance of another, who swam over 
to his relief, tied the limbs fast to the root of a tree. 
This bent sapling formed an arched bridge about 
forty feet long, six inches wide, and elevated in the 
center about twelve or fifteen feet over the deepest 
of the turbid stream, on which we crossed — astride 
— safely, pushing our baggage before us, and resumed 
our journey, leaving the hickory bridge for the accom- 
modation of the public. 

" Such were our facilities for crossing in those days, 
when we had help; but, when alone, there was often 
no alternative but to make the horse swim with his 
rider and baggage, and trust to Providence to get 
safely through. And such were the difficulties to 
which we were accustomed in carrying the gospel 
to the poor, in the new countries, then; and the 
same are, doubtless, realized now by many of our 
traveling preachers on the frontiers of the work. 
X ow, for such work as this I would rather have a 
half a dozen such young preachers as those above 
named than twenty graduates of any theological 
seminary in the United States. A. H. Stemmons 
has gone to his reward, and John S. Barger and 
George Richardson are still in their Master's work, 
though the latter has been for many years much 
disabled by hemorrhage from the lungs. Peace be 
with them!" 

"William Crain and William Cundifi* succeeded 



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43 



Barger and Greenup the following year. They 
were zealous young men, and devoted to their work. 
Their labors were greatly blessed. Revivals crowned 
their ministry, and at the close of the year three 
hundred and eighty-five white and six colored mem- 
bers were reported by them to the Conference. 

In 1827, William Brown was sent alone to the 
Clarke's River Circuit, The Minutes of 1828 report 
a small decrease in the white membership, but an 
increase in the colored. 

At the General Conference of 1828 all that por- 
tion of Kentucky embraced in Jackson's Purchase 
was transferred to the Tennessee Conference; hence, 
in the autumn of that year, we find the Clarke's 
River Circuit in the Forked Deer District, over 
which Thomas Smith presided. Mr. Smith was 
in many respects a remarkable man. Dr. Rivers* 
says: 

"It was in the year 1828 that I met for the first 
time with Thomas Smith, Presiding Elder of the 
Forked Deer District, Tennessee Conference. I was 
but a boy. My father had but recently removed 
from Franklin county, Tennessee, and had settled in 
Hardeman, a few miles west of the town of Bolivar, 
and not far from Ebenezer Church, of which he 
became a member. It was in this Church that I 
first heard a sermon from the lips of Thomas Smith. 
He was a man of robust frame, florid complexion, 
and with hair thinly scattered over a large, round 
head. At the time of which I write, Ebenezer 
Church was torn with dissensions. It was during 



* Letter to the author. 



44 



We stern Cavaliers. 



the controversy which resulted in the formation of 
the Methodist Protestant Church. The Mutual 
Rights, a most bitter partisan sheet, assailed the Old 
Church with every sort of weapon known to eccle- 
siastical warfare. The Bishops were at once the 
butt of ridicule and the objects of vituperation; 
the itinerant ministry came in for a large share of 
obloquy; the entire Constitution of the Church 
must be changed, the Bishops disrobed, and the lay 
element be admitted into the Conferences, both 
Annual and General. In order to carry out these 
radical measures, a Union Society had been formed 
in Ebenezer Church. Some of the most prominent 
members of the Church belonged to it; they were 
men of talents, piety, and wealth. Under the direc- 
tion of Mr. Smith, these members were charged 
with sowing dissensions, speaking evil of ministers, 
etc., and were expelled the Church. He brought 
the whole force of his character, and all the power 
of his administration, against those whom he re- 
garded as enemies to the peace of the Church. He 
did nothing by piecemeal. He carried on a most 
relentless war, and did not rest until the offending 
members were cut off and the Church purified. As 
he thought of this heresy, with him compromise 
was cowardice, and cowardice was disaster and dis- 
grace. His loyalty to the Church was undoubted, 
his courage universally admitted, and his character 
as a warrior was fully established. He determined 
to crush out the rebellion, and he did it by driving 
from the fold some of his best members. In all this 
he was thoroughly conscientious, and was fully con- 



Western Cavaliers. 



45 



vinced that the glory of God and the good of the 
Church were promoted by throwing overboard from 
the good old Methodist ship these rebellious mem- 
bers. 

" In the meantime, he did not forget his great work 
of saving souls. His District extended from Flor- 
ence, Alabama, to Memphis, Tennessee, and from 
La Grange, Tennessee, to Paducah, Kentucky. It 
included the whole of the present Memphis Con- 
ference, together with several counties in Middle 
Tennessee and North Alabama. It required him to 
be absent from home more than four-fifths of his 
time. The country was new and rough ; the roads 
were in many places impassable, except to a brave 
cavalier. Alone on horseback he passed through 
deep and gloomy swamps, and across frightful 
creeks, muddy sloughs, and dangerous bayous. He 
never hesitated; he never murmured. He was ap- 
palled by no dangers, and he shrank from no obsta- 
cles. His frame was stalwart, his health perfect, 
his constitution of iron. His spirits were elastic, 
and his adventures were often full of romance. He 
seldom failed to be at his appointment. He was 
happy in the hut of the backwoodsman, and loved 
to preach the gospel in the log-cabin of the hunter, 
or beneath the shade of some grand old forest. 
With a powerful physical frame, great capacity for 
endurance, a stentorian voice that sounded like the 
peals of a clarion, and could be distinctly heard by 
thousands, he was a splendid representative of the 
pioneer Methodist preacher. His early education 
had been almost entirely neglected. He read badly, 



46 



Western Cavaliers. 



and his orthography was wretched ; he could not 
have taught a common school of the lowest order. 
This captain of the hosts of Israel could not have 
been a champion in the most common orthograph- 
ical tournament; and yet he was a man of vigorous 
intellect, and often preached with great power. He 
was great at a camp-meeting; he was here a general 
marshaling his forces. He kept all the elements in 
order; he ruled with an iron will and a steady 
hand; he preached with great pathos and power. 
His appeals to the unconverted were earnest, and 
his unstudied eloquence often stirred the multitudes, 
and brought many a penitent to the altar. I have 
known him to have more than a hundred conver- 
sions at one camp-meeting. In the pulpit, in the 
altar, in the tent, and in the grove, he was a worker. 
His voice always clear, his faith ever strong, and his 
heart always in the work, he was just such a leader 
as the enthusiastic young men delighted to follow. 

"I have said that his spirits were elastic; they 
were sometimes too exuberant, bordering on levity. 
In the pulpit, he was grave and dignified; out of it, 
he was full of mirth, and loved a hearty, ringing 
laugh. This was sometimes spoken against by 
those whose displeasure he happened to incur. For 
four years, with a salary of one hundred dollars for 
himself, &nd the same for his estimable wife, and a 
pittance for each child, he traveled over this exten- 
sive District, preaching the unsearchable riches of 
Christ. He took great interest in spreading Meth- 
odist literature, and was active in the sale of our 
standard books. He never went with empty saddle- 



Western Cavaliers. 



47 



bags. He felt that this was part of his great call- 
ing, and, though a Presiding Elder, was not above 
selling our books; and while his voice responded to 
the ax of the woodman and the rifle of the hunter, 
his richly-laden saddle-bags offered the writings of 
Wesley and Clarke to all that were able to purchase. 
After awhile he did what he never intended to do: 
he located, studied law, and joined the Methodist 
Protestant Church. After this I lost sight of him. 
He, however, returned to his first love, and died in 
peace many years ago." 

The Clarke's River Circuit was served by Nathan 
Johnson. Under his ministry the Church was 
greatly blessed. At the next Conference he reported 
four hundred and forty-two white and seventeen col- 
ored members. 

In 1829 William M. Smith, who had traveled two 
years, and William W. Phillips, a young man just 
admitted on trial, were appointed to Clarke's River 
Circuit. Under their ministry the membership 
continued to increase. At the ensuing Conference 
they reported four hundred and eighty-nine white and 
fourteen colored members. 

In 1830 we find Thomas Smith, who had traveled 
the Forked Deer District the previous year, returned 
to the same field, and three preachers sent to Clarke's 
River Circuit. The appointment of so many men 
to a field occupied the year previous by a solitary 
preacher plainly indicated the importance of the 
work to be accomplished. 

This section of the State of Kentucky was, just 
at this period, inviting more than ordinary at- 



48 



Western Cavaliers. 



tention. Families from the more densely popu- 
lated sections of the State, as well as from other 
States, attracted thither by the fertility and cheap- 
ness of the lands, were seeking homes in this 
portion of Kentucky. The Presiding Elder, aware 
of the importance of meeting the growing de- 
mands of his work, asked for the appointment of 
Moses S. Morris, Harris G. Joplin, and Duncan 
McFarlin to this inviting field. Moses S. Morris 
had been in the itinerancy two years; his previous 
appointments were the Winchester and Wolfe Cir- 
cuits. Harris G. Joplin had entered the Conference 
the preceding year, and had traveled the Gibson 
Circuit; while Duncan McFarlin had just become 
an itinerant. Entering upon their work in the 
spirit of the Master, these faithful ministers of 
Christ resolved to succeed. The gospel was preached 
by them with commendable zeal, and with great 
simplicity, winning many souls to Christ. At the 
close of the year the white membership had in- 
creased to six hundred and fifty-five, although only 
four colored members were reported. 

In 1824 two of the most remarkable men of 
American Methodism were admitted on trial into 
the Tennessee Conference — George W. D. Harris 
and Alexander L. P. Green. Without the advan- 
tages of early education, both soon attained to emi- 
nence, and became giants in the ranks, and for nearly 
half a century were leaders, the one in the Memphis 
and the other in the Tennessee Conference. 

George W. D. Harris was born in Montgomery 
county, North Carolina, January 25, 1797. He spent 



Western Cavaliers. 



49 



his youth and early manhood as a prodigal from God, 
wandering far away on the wastes of folly and of 
sin. The impressions, however, made upon his 
mind and heart by the teachings of his mother, a 
woman eminent for piety, and a Methodist, were 
never effaced.* All along the pathway of vice her 
instructions, like faithful monitors, rose before him, 
telling him of a better life and a happier destiny. 
In 1821 he attended a camp-meeting at is"orvill's 
old camp -ground, in Bedford county, Tennessee, 
where, under the faithful preaching of Benjamin 
Sewell, he was powerfully awakened. Mourners 
were invited to the altar for the prayers of the 
Church, and Mr. Harris was among the first to 
accept the invitation. There, while pleading for 
mercy, he was soundly converted to God.f 

Impressed with the conviction that he was divinely 
called to the work of the ministry, in 1824 he re- 
ceived license to preach, and was admitted on 
trial into the Tennessee Conference. In 1831 Mr. 
Harris was placed in charge of the Paris District, 
which embraced the Wadesboro and Hickman 
Circuits, formed from the Clarke's River Circuit, 
lying in Kentucky. He had traveled the Pond 
Springs, the Bedford, the Winchester, the Lincoln, 
the Stone's River, and the Nashville Circuits — the 
last-named two years. 

To the office of Presiding Elder Mr. Harris 

* His father clicl not join the Church until after his son did. 

f Mr. Harris was married at the time. His wife had been 
brought up by Baptist parents, but had joined the Methodist 
Church. 
3 



50 



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brought not only a ripe experience, gathered from 
seven years of arduous toil and privation on large 
and laborious circuits, but a commanding presence, 
a robust constitution, capable of much endurance, 
an herculean intellect, richly stored with gems of re- 
ligious truth, a heart sanctified to God, and energy 
and zeal which scarcely knew any bounds. No man 
in the Tennessee Conference was better qualified to 
be a leader than George W. D. Harris. Entering 
upon the work of his extensive District, he soon 
became familiar with every portion of it, and every- 
where his presence and his power were felt. In the 
pulpit, in the Quarterly Conference, in the family 
and social circles, he exerted an influence extending 
not only to the preachers among whom he was a 
leader, but to all the people. 

To the Wadesboro Circuit Robert L. Andrews 
and Drury Womaek were appointed, and Uriah 
Williams and Elias R. Porter to the Hickman. 

Robert L. Andrews had been a traveling preacher 
for three years, having entered the Conference in 
1828. Before he was sent to Kentucky he traveled 
the Duck River, the Dickson, and the Reel River Cir- 
cuits. His colleague was admitted on trial in 1829, 
and appointed to the Cypress Circuit. His name, 
however, does not appear in the Minutes again until 
1831, when we find him the junior preacher on the 
Wadesboro Circuit. 

The name of Uriah Williams first appears on the 
roll of traveling preachers in 1829. His first ap- 
pointment was to the Cypress Circuit, with James 
McFerrin as his Presiding Elder. In 1830 he was 



Western Cavaliers. 



51 



sent to Caney Fork, and in 1831 he came into 
Kentucky. Elias R. Porter had just been admitted 
on trial. The foundations of Methodism had been 
laid by faithful men who had preceded them — 
classes had been formed and Churches organized; 
but under their ministry the Church attained an 
influence in the "Purchase" it had not known be- 
fore. At the close of the Conference-year three hun- 
dred and sixty-one white and thirteen colored mem- 
bers were reported from the Wadesboro Circuit, 
and/owr hundred and five white and five colored from 
the Hickman. 

This brings us up to the period where this volume 
opens. 

In the Tennessee Conference, the gifted and 
indefatigable Harris was returned to the Paris Dis- 
trict, which still embraced the Hickman and Wades- 
boro Circuits, in Kentucky; Charles T. Ramsey and 
Arthur Davis were appointed to the Hickman Cir- 
cuit, and Hiram M. Glass and Calvin Thompson to 
the Wadesboro Circuit. 

Charles T. Ramsey was born in IsTorth Carolina 
in 1794, but, before he attained to manhood, he re- 
moved with his parents to East Tennessee. At a 
later period he settled in Missouri, where, in the 
twenty-seventh year of his age, he became awak- 
ened to a sense of his condition as a sinner through 
the instrumentality of the Methodist ministry. He 
joined the Church, was soundly converted, and soon 
afterward removed to the Western District of Ten- 
nessee, where, in the autumn of 1829, he became a 
traveling preacher. His fields of labor before he en- 



52 



We ste rn Cavaliers. 



tered Kentucky were the Beach, the Hatchie, and 
the Gibson Circuits.* In these several charges he 
had been highly acceptable as a preacher, as well 
as successful in winning souls to Christ. 

Arthur Davis f was born in Stewart county, Ten- 

" :i: At the close of his year on the Hickman Circuit, Mr. 
Ramsey was transferred to the Missouri Conference, which 
then embraced the State of Arkansas, and was appointed to 
the Mount Prairie Circuit, where he was eminently useful. 
His next field of labor was the Little Rock District, which he 
filled two years with great acceptability. He was appointed 
the third year to the Little Rock District, but was taken sick 
during the session of the Conference in Batesville, and died 
November 10, 1836. His end was triumphant. 

fin the Western Methodist, several years ago, Dr. Rivers, 
after giving a sketch of James 0. Williams, a gifted young 
preacher, thus speaks of Arthur Davis: ''Altogether unlike 
Williams was Arthur Davis. Williams had the eloquence of 
intellect and of imagination, Davis the eloquence of passion. 
Both were young and zealous, and commenced preaching 
about the same time. Williams was much the more highly 
cultivated intellectually; Davis had much deeper communion 
with his own heart and with his God. Davis stirred the 
people by his deep earnestness, his gushing tears, and his 
intense feeling. He sought to win souls; he had no ambi- 
tion for fame. He was deeply, painfully conscious of his 
defects of education, and want of mental training; but he 
could not turn aside from his great work. His humility, his 
prayerfulness, his sincere and earnest piety, and his vehe- 
mence of passion, carried all before him. 'Ah ! ' said he to 
me, ' I have shed a bushel of tears this year on the Hatchie 
Circuit.' And so he had. He literally went forth weeping, 
bearing precious seed. He will come again, bringing his 
sheaves with him. I heard Williams preach, and his sermon 
was followed by such stunning applause as I had never heard 
bestowed upon a young man; I heard Davis, and his sermon 
was followed by a hundred mourners in the altar." 



Western Cavaliers. 



53 



nessee, February 17, 1811. He was brought up un- 
der Baptist influence, but took but little, if any, 
interest in the subject of religion until he was well- 
nigh grown, when he was awakened under the 
faithful ministry of Richard Hudson. On the 16th 
of August, 1830, he was converted at Manly's 
Chapel, and was received into the Methodist Church 
by Mr. Hudson on the following day. He was 
licensed to preach by Thomas Smith in 1831, and 
entered the traveling connection in the autumn of 
the same year. His first appointment was to the 
Hatchie Circuit, where he was eminently useful. 
The Hickman Circuit, to which he was next ap- 
pointed, as the colleague of Mr. Ramsey, was large, 
embracing Hickman and a portion of Graves county, 
in the State of Kentucky, and extending into Obion 
and AVeaklev counties, in Tennessee. 

The first round of appointments was filled by Mr. 
Davis. "What is now known as the pleasant village 
of Hickman at that time bore the name of Mills's 
Point. Although Mills's Point was on the plan of 
the circuit as a preaching-place, Christianity had 
exerted but a feeble influence in the community, 
and on more than one occasion the preacher had 
met with rude treatment. 

The first appointment for this place was at night. 
Having preached in the morning a few miles from 
the village, a brother, who was a class-leader, famil- 
iar with the unkind reception and rough treatment 
which preachers had generally met in Mills's Point, 
endeavored to dissuade Mr. Davis from filling his 
appointment, and from incurring the hazard of 



54 



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personal violence. Arthur Davis was not the man 
to be alarmed. He had been commissioned to preach 
the gospel of Christ, and the constituted authorities 
of the Church had embraced this village in his field 
of labor, and no amount of opposition could deter 
him from the performance of what he believed to 
be his duty. Without the polish of education — but 
possessed of a masterly intellect, an indomitable 
energy, a burning desire to save sinners, and with 
a courage that knew no fear — dressed in plainest 
homespun, he made his appearance in the village 
that afternoon. Alighting from his horse at the 
tavern where he stopped, he was invited into the 
bar-room, where he found a motley crowd of wicked 
men — some playing fiddles, some dancing, some 
swearing, some gambling, and all under the influ- 
ence of ardent spirits. Taking his seat among 
them, he could not do otherwise than listen to their 
obscene jests and ribaldry — the Church and the 
preachers being freely denounced. 

Learning that in the community there was one 
family friendly to Methodism, at whose house there 
had been occasional preaching, Mr. Davis called at 
the house and inquired for the gentleman. Being 
told that he was not at home, he asked the lady 
whether preaching was expected at her house 
that evening. The rough exterior of the preacher 
was repellant to her ideas of the " cloth/' and she 
promptly replied in the negative. He then asked 
her whether there was an appointment for preach- 
ing anywhere in town. Her reply was, 66 Not that 
I know of!' "Do the people want preaching?" 



Western Cavaliers. 



55 



was the next inquiry made by Mr. Davis. "1 do 
not know/*' was the hasty reply. " It makes no 
difference with me; the gospel I preach is not on 
the beg/' was the answer of Arthur Davis. He 
bade her good evening, and although she called to 
him several times, as he retreated from the house 
and yard, he heeded her not, but returned as rap- 
idly as he could walk to the tavern, and was once 
more in the midst of the drunken crowd. 

At the announcement of supper all went into the 
dining-room, where Mr. Davis had still to hear the 
rough language of these ungodly men. A few mo- 
ments later found them in the bar-room, engaged 
in almost every kind of vice, uttering the most hor- 
rid oaths, and occasionally walking to the door and 
looking for the preacher, whom they were expecting, 
and with whom they contemplated " some fun/ 3 

In the meantime, the gentleman at whose house 
Arthur Davis had called had returned home; and, 
being informed by his wife that the preacher had 
been to his house, and of what had occurred, he sent 
a servant to the tavern to invite him to his house. 
The landlord declared that no preacher was there, 
and swore that he had " not seen a preacher for a 
long time.''* A deep concern was at once expressed 
by the vulgar crowd, who declared that no preacher 
would dare venture into the village, and if one should 
do so they would like to see him. Quiet and calm, 
Mr. Davis did not move from his seat. The servant 
was persistent. " There is a preacher here," he re- 
plied; "he has been to our house, but did not find 
my master at home. Pie has, however, come home, 



56 Western Cavaliers. 



and prepared seats for preaching; had sent word to 
the people in town that there would be preaching 
at his house that night, and a good many persons 
are there now waiting for him." In the most pro- 
fane manner, the landlord and his crowd swore 
again that no preacher had stopped at his house. 

Thinking it time to stop the discussion, Arthur 
Davis arose from his seat, and, calling for his saddle- 
bags, took out his Bible, and, holding it up before 
them, said : "I am the preacher; I am the man you 
want to see so badly." Speaking with the authority 
of a brave man, he commanded them to follow him. 
Unable to resist the presence of such a man, or 
attracted by the boldness with which he confronted 
them, without uttering a word they obeyed his com- 
mand, and went with him to the place of preaching. 
The house was already w r ell filled, but Mr. Davis de- 
termined to provide for that part of the congregation 
by whom he was accompanied, who, although unable 
to obtain seats, found comfortable places to stand. 

A small table for a pulpit, on which were placed 
a hymn-book and Bible, indicated the place to be 
occupisd by the preacher. Without taking a seat, 
he opened the hymn-book, read two lines and sang 
them, and knelt in prayer. The prayer was brief; 
before the congregation could kneel, the preacher 
said "Amen." 

It was late in November, and the evenings were 
quite uncomfortable. After announcing his text, 
he said: "I am quite comfortably situated myself, 
and on this occasion I will preach the best I can. I 
do not know how long I may preach, but shall not 



Western Cavaliers. 57 

quit until I get ready. If any of you get tired, you 
are at liberty to leave at any time ; it will not dis- 
turb me." 

For more than an hour Arthur Davis preached 
to that audience. They were spell-bound. 'Not a 
whisper disturbed the silence. It was the simple 
story of the cross; it was salvation by faith in the 
atoning merits of Jesus Christ; it was the witness 
of the Spirit bearing witness with ours that we are 
the children of God; it was an escape from the 
damnation of hell, and the abundant entrance into 
heaven, and the enjoyment of its resplendent glo- 
ries, told in a plain and simple manner, by a sincere 
preacher of the gospel, that so entranced them. 

If a desire was expressed by the gentleman and 
his wife at whose house Mr. Davis had preached 
that another appointment be left for preaching, the 
entire congregation participated in it, none of whom 
were warmer in their expressions than the crowd 
from the tavern, some of wdiom had heard the gos- 
pel for the first time in many years. 

After announcing an appointment for Mr. Ramsey, 
the preacher in charge, and another for himself, he 
pronounced the benediction, with as little ceremony 
as he had entered upon the service. 

Mr. Ramsey had preached, but the people looked 
forward to the next appointment of Mr. Davis with 
peculiar interest. He had arrested the attention of 
a community where all others had failed. He had 
reached the hearts of men addicted to every species 
of vice, and in a single sermon impressed upon 
them the importance of religion; and, in the hands 



58 



We stern Cavaliers. 



of God, he was to be the instrument in organizing 
the Church and in taking into its fold many who 
had been wanderers from Christ. His reception on 
his second appearance was a warm one. All were 
glad to see him. He preached; his congregation 
was large, and at the close of the sermon he organ- 
ized a Church consisting of twelve persons. 

From this period to the close of the Conference- 
year the Hickman Circuit was in a blaze. Every 
appointment was on fire. The cries of awakened 
sinners and the shouts of souls converted to God 
were heard wherever the gospel was preached and 
the tidings of a Redeemer's love proclaimed. At 
the quarterly and camp-meetings the gifted Harris 
delivered his message of life — of death — " in 
thoughts that breathe, and words that burn," * 
while throughout the circuit, ever at their post, the 
zealous Ramsey, the most powerful exhorter in the 
Conference, as well as a model preacher, and the 
plain, unostentatious, but strong-minded Davis, with 
such local preachers as Joshua Cole and Fletcher 
Sullivan, fearlessly warned sinners to flee the 
wrath to come.f 

* There were three camp-meetings during this year in the 
Hickman Circuit — one at Oliver's Camp-ground, and two at 
Mobley's. At the Oliver camp-meeting on Sunday, at eleven 
o'clock, Mr. Harris preached the funeral-sermon of a Brother 
Atterbury, an excellent man. His text was, "That as sin hath 
reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through right- 
eousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord." The 
sermon was one of great power, and left a lasting impression 
on the community. 

f At one of the camp-meetings at Mobley's, on Sunday, at 



Western Cavaliers. 



59 



At the camp-meeting at Oliver's Camp - ground 
many were born to God; and at the first camp- 
meeting for this year at Mobley's more than one 
hundred souls were converted. At the ensuing- 
Conference seven hundred and six white and forty- 
three colored members were reported, increasing the 
membership nearly one hundred per cent. 

We are not surprised at these results when we 
consider the energy, the zeal, and the untiring devo- 
tion of these faithful men.* 

three o'clock, while Calvin Thompson was preaching, a man, 
wild in appearance, and remarkable for his muscular power 
and righting qualities, only half clad, and bare-headed, came 
running into the camp-ground, making tremendous bounds, 
and screaming, at every leap, " The devil is after me!" He 
jumped over the heads of several ladies, and landed in the 
middle of the altar, falling on one of his shoulders and dis- 
locating it. He was immediately removed to the preachers' 
tent, and the disjointed limb was reset by Dr. Nichols. Some- 
what relieved from pain and quieted in mind, he was asked 
for an explanation of his strange conduct, when he stated 
that, being under conviction, he had retired to the woods to 
pray, whereupon the devil confronted him in person, and 
that, having been hitherto accustomed to fight his way through 
the world, he made a heavy pass at his antagonist. The devil, 
he affirmed, gathered him by the hair of his head, and shook 
him as though he had been an infant, and when let loose he 
started for the altar as a place of refuge. 

* In a letter to the author from the Eev. T. L. Boswell, 
D.D., of the Memphis Conference, he says: "I remember 
being at one of the camp-meetings held on the Hickman Cir- 
cuit, at Mobley's Camp-ground, when Brothers Ramsey and 
Davis were the preachers. It was a time of the greatest relig- 
ious excitement it has ever been my privilege to witness. The 
exercises of the meeting, like the employment of the hosts 
of heaven, never ceased day nor night during my stay. The 



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.We have already referred to the appointment of 
Hiram M. Glass and Calvin Thompson to the 
Wadesboro Circuit. Hiram M. Glass became a 
traveling preacher in 1829. Before his appointment 
to Kentucky he had traveled the Stone's River, 
Jackson, and Neely's Grove Circuits. This, how- 
ever, was Mr. Thompson's first year in the Confer- 
ence. 

Mr. Glass remained on the Wadesboro Circuit but 
a short time. One of the preachers appointed to 
Sandy Circuit, from the failure of his health, was 
unable to continue in the work. The Presiding 
Elder deemed it proper to transfer Mr. Glass to that 
circuit, and employ Thomas L. Boswell, a youth 
only seventeen years of age, to assist Mr. Thomp- 
son, whom he placed in charge of the work. 

Calvin Thompson was an excellent young man, 
deeply pious, and distinguished for his zeal and his 
usefulness.* 

Young Bosw^ell reached the circuit in the month 
of February. Converted to God in his childhood, 
he had been divinely called to the work of the 
Christian ministry, and entered upon its sacred 
duties when a beardless boy, only seventeen years of 
age. He met from the people a kind welcome in 
every portion of his circuit, and with commendable 
zeal labored to do good and to save sinners. 

The Wadesboro Circuit was large, embracing the 

altar exercises would suspend at the sound of the trumpet 
long enough for preaching, and then commence afresh." 

* He remained in the traveling connection until 1839, when 
he located. 



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61 



counties of Calloway, Graves, and McCracken, ex- 
tending as low down as " The Iron "Works." It 
contained twenty-four regular appointments, to be 
filled every four weeks, besides many occasional ones. 
The rides were long and lonesome, and the privations 
such as are incident to a recently settled country. 

The large area embraced in this circuit, and the 
great number of preaching-places, deprived these 
young men almost entirely of each other's society. 
They met but seldom during the year, only at the 
quarterly and camp-meetings. 

The inexperience of Thompson and Boswell was 
in a great measure supplied by several excellent 
local preachers, who resided in the bounds of their 
work. Robert Whitnel, C. A. Waterfield, Caleb 
Cole, and William Holyfield enjoyed, in the fullest 
sense, the confidence of the people among whom 
they lived, were distinguished for their piety and 
zeal, and weie eminently useful. 

It would be a pleasant task to follow these faith- 
ful and zealous preachers of the gospel throughout 
the year — to listen to the invitations, the appeals, 
the warnings, that fell from their lips; to see them 
as they held up the cross, " all stained with hal- 
lowed blood," as the only refuge for a lost and 
ruined world; and to hear the cries of awakened 
sinners, and the shouts of converted souls brought 
to Christ through their ministry. 

Young Boswell did not know much of books; but 
with " the one Book," which reveals the plan by 
which sinners may be saved, he was familiar. The 
cardinal doctrines of the word of God — the depravity 



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Western Cavaliers. 



of man's nature, the atonement, justification by 
faith, the witness of the Spirit, and the sanctifica- 
tion of the soul — were great truths which had been 
written upon his own heart, and which he impressed 
upon the hearts of others. 

If the Hickman Circuit was blessed with exten- 
sive revivals, they were not confined to that field. 
Eevivals also crowned the labors of these young- 
men in every part of the TVadesboro Circuit. The 
interest on the subject of religion was so great that 
two camp-meetings were held during the summer 
at the TVadesboro Camp-ground, and hundreds were 
converted to God. 

It was during this year that Methodism was in- 
troduced into Paducah, at that time a small village, 
in McCracken county. 

A few members of the Methodist Church had 
settled at that point, among whom was Joseph Cole, 
a brother to the preacher we have mentioned, and a 
Mrs. Smith, by whom the preachers were enter- 
tained (her husband, although friendly to the 
Church, not being a member); yet no Church had 
been organized. 

A small vacant store-room stood on the banks of 
the beautiful Ohio, in which Calvin Thompson and 
Thomas L. Boswell preached the gospel of Christ, 
and where they organized a Church whose influence 
would be felt in the coming years. 

Pleasant as was the year through which vouno; 
Boswell had passed, he was not exempt from priva- 
tions. VTe have already referred to the laro'e ex- 
tent of territory over which his circuit spread. The 



Western Cavaliers. 



63 



country was new, the traveling difficult, and many 
of the people uncultivated, and opposed to the ad- 
vances which were being made by the Church.* 
His extreme youthfulness, however, often pro- 
tected him from insult. He had counted the cost, 
had consecrated his life to the service of the Church, 
and nothing could deter him from the faithful per- 
formance of duty. 

It has been intimated already that this would be 
a year of unparalleled success. The Minutes show 
a net increase in the Kentucky Conference, at the 
close of the year, of three thousand Jive hundred and 
seventy-five white and one thousand and fifty-eight col- 
ored members. 

In the Wadesboro Circuit an increase of tico hun- 
dred and twenty-seven white and twenty-seven colored 
members was reported, and in the Hickman Circuit 
the increase was three hundred and one white and 
thirty-eight colored, making the total increase four 
thousand five hundred and five white members, and 
eleven hundred and four colored. 

By referring to the Minutes of 1832, it will be 
observed that for the first time the following ques- 
tions were asked: 

" What amounts are necessary for the super- 
annuated preachers, and widows and orphans of 
preachers, and to make up the deficiencies of those 
who have not obtained their regular allowance on 
the circuits? 

*A crowd of ruffians on one occasion invited Calvin Thomp- 
son to drink with them from a jug they had. Upon his 
refusal, they tried to force him to drink, but failed. 



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Western Cavaliers. 



""What has been collected on the foregoing ac- 
counts, and how has it been applied? 

" What has been contributed for the support of 
missions, and what for the publication of Bibles, 
tracts, and Sunday-school books?" 

In answer to the first question, it was stated 
that the deficiency was four thousand one hundred 
and fifty-five dollars and fifty-seven cents. To meet 
this deficiency, seven hundred and thirty-seven dol- 
lars and eight cents was collected, four hundred 
dollars of which was received from the Book Con- 
cern, and seventy -five from the Chartered Fund, 
making the collections from the several stations and 
circuits only two hundred and sixty-two dollars and 
thirty-eight cents. 

The largest contribution (twenty-one dollars) was 
sent from Georgetown Circuit. The Shelbyville 
Female Academy and Mount Sterling Circuit sent 
each twenty dollars, Lexington Station eighteen 
dollars and sixty cents, the Lexington Circuit eight- 
een dollars and fifty cents, Jefferson Circuit fifteen 
dollars and eighty-seven cents, the city of Louisville 
fifteen dollars and twenty-five cents, Shelbyville and 
Brick Chapel fourteen dollars and eighty -seven 
cents, Cynthiana eleven dollars . and seventy -five 
cents, and Maysville eleven dollars. ' The remain- 
ing contributions were in smaller amounts, only 
twenty charges sending up any collection at all. 

Out of the amount collected there was paid to 
Bishop McKendree $10 71, to Bishop Roberts $14 48, 
to Bishop Soule $17 76, to Bishop Hedding $15 48, 
to Bishop Emory $18 52, to Bishop Andrew $18 52 



Western Cavaliers. 



65 



— total, $96 47. After deducting this amount, only 
$640 91 was left to be divided between the super- 
annuated preachers, and the widows and orphans 
of preachers, and to make up the deficiencies of 
those who had not obtained their regular allowance 
on the circuits and stations. 

When we consider the small salaries allowed the 
preachers at this period — one hundred dollars for a 
preacher, one hundred dollars for his wife, sixteen 
dollars for each child under seven years of age, 
and twenty-four dollars from seven to fourteen years 
of age, after which no allowance was made for the 
children, with but seldom any allowance whatever 
for table expenses * — and then remember that this 
meager salary was scarcely ever half paid, we pause 
to inquire, How was it possible for these men to con- 
tinue in the work? f 

Many of them, indeed, were compelled to retire. 
At this very Conference six men— active, energetic, 
and zealous — located. J 

There is no plainer duty laid down in the Bible 
than that "those who preach the gospel shall live 
of the gospel," and no Church can prosper to its 
full extent that fails in this respect. In places 
where no Societies have been organized preachers 
must be supported by contributions from Churches 

*The first money for table expenses ever paid to Benjamin 
T. Crouch was in 1840, and was collected by the author on the 
Yellow Banks Circuit. The amount was twenty-six dollars. 

f Fifty-one preachers report a deficiency at this Conference. 

% Thomas G-. Reese, James L. Greenup, Wilson S. McMur- 
rey, Elijah Knox, A. H. Stemmons, and John W. F. Tevis. 



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Western Cavaliers. 



already established; but in Kentucky, at this 
time, Churches were fully organized almost every- 
where. 

That the support of the ministry was willfully 
neglected will not be gainsaid, and that 'a fear- 
ful responsibility rests upon the Church of that 
period for the neglect will scarcely be denied. It 
may be that the preachers, too, were to blame. A 
feeling of delicacy prevented them from presenting 
their claims to the people they served, and hence 
the people in many instances were not instructed as 
they should have been in the duty of supporting 
their preachers.* 

* The author was once holding a class-meeting, and asked 
a wealthy brother to relate his Christian experience. After \ 
referring to his conversion, and the conversion of his wife 
and eight children, he added: "And I owe it all, under 
Grod, to Methodist preachers." Knowing that he paid very 
little for the support of the Church, I asked him how much 
he gave annually for missions. "Not a cent," he promptly 
replied. I then inquired, " How much do you pay to aid in 
the support of your preachers ? " " I pay fifty cents a year," 
was the answer. I said to him: "Brother, it seems to me, 
from your statement, that on the one hand you have been 
greatly blessed by the Church, and on the other you have 
been criminally negligent in reference to your obligations and 
duty. The small amount you pay toward supporting your 
preachers, and the fact that you pay nothing for missions, is 
an insult to God. Cannot you do better?" " Perhaps I can," 
he answered. "How much better?" I demanded. "I can 
possibly double the amount for the preachers, and give as 
much for other purposes." "Too little," I rejoined. "How 
much would you have me pay?" he asked. Thinking it 
better not to press him very hard at first, I replied: "Not less 
than twenty dollars for the support of the preachers, and at 



Western Cavaliers. 



67 



The support of the superannuated preachers, and 
the widows and orphans of preachers who had 
fallen in the work, was far below the necessities of 
the claimants, as well as the ability of the Church. 
Benjamin Ogden and Barnabas McHenry, to whom 
the Church in Kentucky was so greatly indebted, 
received thirty-six dollars and thirty-seven cents; James 
Ward, whose health had broken down under the 
labor and exposure of arduous campaigns, received 
forty - eight dollars, and the other superannuated 
preachers in the same proportion; while Mrs. Fin- 
ley and her children received, to support them one 
year, thirty-one dollars and twenty-five cents, and Mrs. 
Dill's children, whose father had fallen at his post, 
beloved and honored, and whose mother, too, had 
died, were paid fourteen dollars and fifty cents, 
and Atterbury's children, doubly orphaned, seven 
dollars and twenty-five cents. 

It certainly reqaired no little zeal and devotion to 
the cause which these men were laboring to ad- 
vance — with such a support, and such prospects be- 
fore them in old age, and before their families, if 
they should die — to continue in the work. Their 
trust, however, was in God, who had called them to 
the ministry. He had fed the ravens, and watched 
the falling sparrow, and had promised to be with 
them in every trial, and they were willing to trust 
to his promise. 

least half that sum for missions." He accepted my sugges- 
tion, and became a very liberal man. The members of the 
Church, too, where this interview occurred contributed that 
year more than twice as much as they had ever given before. 



68 



Western Cavaliers. 



The Missionary Society of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church in the United States was organized in 
1819. Very little, however, had been done for the 
cause of missions anywhere in the Church. In the 
Kentucky Conference no interest had been awak- 
ened, or, if so, it had passed away without any 
active demonstrations. 

At the Conference of 1832 forty-four dollars and 
fifty cents was reported for missions — the first re- 
port for this cause we have on record in Kentucky. 
The resolution adopted by the body at this session, 
to which we have already alluded, indicated that a 
new feeling had been imparted to the Church on 
the question — that it would be impossible for the 
Church at home to succeed if it took no interest in 
the extension of the kingdom of Christ. The re- 
sults of the year in this direction, although far be- 
low what might have been expected from the action 
of the Conference, showed an upward tendency. 
At the Conference of 1833 seventy-nine dollars and 
seventy-fine cents was collected for missions. 

Another question of grave importance — the pub- 
lishing interests of the Church — had been freely 
discussed in several previous Conferences, and suit- 
able resolutions concurred in. 

In the Conference of 1831 the following resolu- 
tions were adopted: 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, unaM- 
imously — First, That we view the Book Concern of 
the M. E. Church as an important auxiliary in the 
great work in which we are engaged, both as a 
means of spreading religious knowledge and as a 



Western Cavaliers. 



69 



source of relief and support to an itinerant minis- 
try, particularly to the worn-out preachers and 
their families, as well as to the widows and orphans 
of those who have fallen in the work. 

''Second, That we view with regret and disgust 
the ungenerous efforts of certain individuals to un- 
dermine and ruin the Concern, evidently from mo- 
tives of private interest, in publishing and vending 
such books as have hitherto been published exclu- 
sively by our Concern, and in endeavoring to im- 
pose spurious publications on the public as the 
genuine and standard publications of our Church. 

"Third, That we, as a body and as individuals, 
will use our best exertions to secure the interests of 
our Concern by recommending and promoting the 
sale of those books and publications which are 
issued from our presses, and that we will have no 
agency whatever in the sale of those books and 
publications which are published by others with 
the evident view of supplanting or injuring our own 
establishment." 

The importance of the circulation of religious 
books of our own publication among the people was 
felt by every preacher in the Conference. Other de- 
nominations of Christians were sending out all over 
the country books advocating their peculiar tenets 
and doctrines; and if Methodism would keep pace 
with them, it must have not only an efficient 
ministry, but an efficient colportage. The difficulty 
of procuring books was great compared with that 
which a preacher now encounters. Express trains 
and railroads were unknown in the West, and yet 



70 



Western Cavaliers. 



it was difficult to find a preacher anywhere from 
whom the standard works of the Church might not 
be purchased. They carried them in their saddle- 
bags on horseback to their meetings, to the homes 
of the rich, and to the cabins of the poor. Our books 
were thus scattered everywhere. A Methodist fam- 
ily could rarely be found without the works of 
"Wesley, Fletcher, and Watson, and the biographies 
of sainted men and women.* Under such training 
the characters of our people were formed; and at 
this period some of the brightest examples ever 
known among the membership in Kentucky shone 
with undiminished luster, while the ministry, in 
many instances, could scarcely boast abler defenders 
of the doctrines held by the Church than were to 
be found in the laity. 

Another benefit accruing from the circulation of 
books was, it supplemented the salary (or, rather, 
the allowance, for the amount was not dignified with 
the name of salary) of the preacher. The profits on 
the sales were small, it is true, but still many a 
preacher was enabled to remain in the itinerant 
field by the revenue received from this source. 

In addition to the circulation .of books on the 
plan we have stated, public collections were ordered 
in the several congregations for the publication of 
Bibles, tracts, and Sunday-school books. At the 

* Two of the best Methodist libraries I have ever met with 
were to be found in the bounds of the Manchester Mission, 
which was my first appointment. They were owned by the 
Rev. George Stivers, a worthy local preacher, and Thomas 
Bowman, a layman. 



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71 



Conference of 1832 — the first at which we find any 
account of funds raised for this purpose — twenty- 
seven dollars and sixty cents were reported, which 
amount was increased the following year to forty- 
two dollars and twenty-jive cents. 

The subject of Colonization was not only agitat- 
ing the mind of the Church at this time in Ken- 
tucky, but the popular feeling was strongly enlisted 
in its favor. There were in the State many free 
persons of color who desired to emigrate to Liberia, 
where a colony had been established, and was at 
that time in a prosperous condition. 

The object of the American Colonization Society 
was not only to provide means for transporting such 
as might choose to go to Liberia, but to make pro- 
vision for their support in that distant land until 
they should be able to take care of themselves. 

At the Conference of 1831 George C. Light, one 
of the most gifted men in the Conference, having 
been solicited by the Society to become their Agent 
in Kentucky, requested to be appointed to this in- 
teresting work. He had served the Society from 
the Conference of 1831 to the Conference of 1832, 
when he was reappointed to that important field. 
By his eloquence, his power, and his zeal, he had 
invested the scheme with an interest it had not pre- 
viously known. Communities that had looked 
upon the enterprise with indifference and doubt 
were awakened, and became its earnest advocates. 

The Kentucky Conference adopted the following 
preamble and resolution : 

"Whereas, in the opinion of this Conference, the 



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Western Cavaliers. 



Colony of Liberia presents an asylum for the free 
people of color of these United States, where lib- 
erty in the popular sense of the word may be en- 
joyed; and whereas, the scheme of African coloni- 
zation is considered as the most likely means, and 
well calculated to extend the blessings of civiliza- 
tion and the light of the gospel of the grace of God 
to the benighted regions of Africa; and whereas, 
the Colonization Society has manifested a laudable 
zeal, and spirit of benevolence, and virtuous enter- 
prise in performing much with very limited means 
in promoting the interests of the colony, which 
is said to be in a flourishing condition; there- 
fore, 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, That 
we highly approve of the scheme of African Colo- 
nization, and that we will recommend it to the 
attention of the people of our charges, and to the 
community in general, as a cause worthy their pat- 
ronage and united cooperation." 

During the year three cavaliers were called from 
labor to reward— Joseph B. Power, Barnabas Mc- 
Henry, and Marcus Lindsey. 

Joseph B. Power and Barnabas McHenry were 
both on the list of superannuates. 

Mr. Powder was born in Montgomery county, 
Kentucky, September 15, 1802, and had entered the 
ministry in 1826, when twenty-four years of age. 
For four years he had faithfully performed the ar- 
duous duties of an itinerant preacher. The failure 
of his health compelled him to retire from active 
service, which he was never afterward able to re- 



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73 



sume. He died July 23, 1833. His end was peace- 
ful and happy. 

For forty-six years the name of Barnabas Mc- 
Henry had been favorably known in the West. ISTo 
one of the early preachers had labored with greater 
devotion to the cause of truth than had this vener- 
able man. Gifted beyond many of his contempo- 
raries, he presented the doctrines of the Church 
with a clearness, and defended them with an ability, 
that distinguished but few men. His life was a 
comment on the religion he professed. He enjoyed 
the blessing of sanctification, and died of cholera, 
in triumph, on the 16th of June, 1833. 

When Marcus Lindsey fell, a hero and a warrior 
passed away. He died of cholera in Washington 
county, Kentucky, July 27, 1833. He had entered 
the ministry in 1810, and from that period until his 
death he had performed the duties assigned him 
with a fidelity that commanded the admiration of 
his friends and challenged the criticism of the ene- 
mies of the cause he had espoused. With an intel- 
lect of the highest order, as a bold and fearless ad- 
vocate of the doctrines he had accepted as the 
teachings of the Bible, he had no peer in the West. 
From the time he became a cavalier until he fell 
on the field of battle, his sword had never been 
permitted to rust, nor his armor to be sullied. He 
was brave and chivalrous in life, and in death tri- 
umphant.* 

* For a fuller sketch of the life, labors, and death of Joseph 
B. Power, Barnabas McHenry, and Marcus Lindsey, see 
" History of Methodism in Kentucky." 
4 



W estern Cavaliers. 



CHAPTER II. 



FKOM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1833 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1834. 



What troubles have we seen ! 

What conflicts have we past! 
Fightings without and fears within, 

Since we assembled last; 
But out of all the Lord 

Hath brought us by his love, 
And still he doth his aid afford, 

And hides our life above. 



JL brave cavaliers who had taken leave of each 
other nearly twelve months before met in the village 
of Greensburg. The meeting was pleasant, yet 
mingled with sadness; for Power, McHenry, and 
Lindsey were not present to answer to the roll-call. 
They had been summoned from labor to reward. 

The session of the Conference opened on the 11th 
of September, and was presided over by Robert 
Richford Roberts. Mr. Roberts was born in Fred- 
erick county, Maryland, August 2, 1778. When 
only fifteen years of age he became a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, having previously 
been converted. A youth of more than ordinary 




were completed, and 



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75 



promise, and of fervent piety, from the time lie made 
a profession of religion the impression rested on the 
mind of the Church that God would call him to 
preach the gospel. Believing himself to be divinely 
chosen to this sacred work, he yielded to his convic- 
tions, and preached his first -sermon about Christmas, 
1801. In the spring of 1802 he was admitted on 
trial into the Baltimore Conference, and appointed to 
the Carlisle Circuit, with the sweet-spirited Wilson 
Lee as his Presiding Elder. His subsequent fields 
of labor, in the Baltimore Conference, were the 
Montgomery, the Frederick, the Chenango, and 
Erie Circuits, and the Pittsburgh, West Wheeling, 
Baltimore, Fell's Point, Alexandria, and George- 
town Stations. In 1818 we find him in the Phila- 
delphia Conference, and, with William Hunter, 
Thomas Boring, John Emory, and Manning Force, 
stationed in the city of Philadelphia, with the cele- 
brated Henry Boehm as his Presiding Elder. He 
remained in Philadelphia two years, when he was 
placed in charge of the Schuylkill District, where 
we find him in May, 1816, when the General Con- 
ference met in the city of Baltimore. 

The death of Bishop Asbury, which had occurred 
on the 31st of March preceding the General Con- 
ference, devolved the duties of the episcopal office 
on Bishop McKendree, the only surviving Bishop. 
There were nine Annual Conferences, embracing the 
United States of America, requiring the supervision 
of this remarkable man. The immense labors he 
had performed had so far impaired his health as to 
render him unequal to the duties his office de- 



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manded; hence, the Committee on Episcopacy rec- 
ommended the election of two additional Bishops. 
On Tuesday, the 14th of May, Enoch George and 
Robert Richford Roberts were elected to this office. 

The responsibilities of the Episcopacy are such 
as no man should covet. If the duties of the office 
at the present period demand greater sacrifices and 
more heavy responsibilities than any other depart- 
ment of ministerial labor, they were certainly not 
less at the time Bishop Roberts was elevated to this 
position. Besides his long and wearisome travel 
on horseback, his constant exposure, his sacrifice 
and toil, the support he received was inadequate to 
the demands of his family, and often left him em- 
barrassed, if not penniless. Until 1824 there was no 
provision in the Discipline for a Bishop's family, 
and he consequently received, for the eight years 
preceding that date, only two hundred dollars a 
year and his traveling expenses.* 

Bishop Roberts had previously, on several occa- 
sions, visited the West. In the autumn of 1816 he 
attended the Ohio Conference, which embraced the 
northern portion of Kentucky, and met in Louis- 
ville; in 1817 he was again present at the session of 
the Ohio Conference, and the same year presided 

*On the 25th day of May, 2824, the General Conference 
adopted the following resolution : 

"Resolved, That the Book Agents and Book Committee in 
New York shall be a committee to estimate the amount neces- 
sary to meet the family expenses of the Bishops, which shall 
be annually paid by the Book Agents out of the funds of the 
Book Concern; and that the above resolution be incorporated 
into our Discipline." 



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77 



over the Tennessee Conference, which included 
Southern Kentucky.* In 1818 he was again present 
at the Ohio Conference, with Bishops MeKendree 
and George. In 1821 we find him at the Kentucky 
Conference, which met in Lexington, t and in 1823 
at the session in Mavsville. From this period until 
1830 he attended every session of the Kentucky 
Conference, which met, respectively, in Shelbyville, 
Russellville, Louisville. Versailles, Shelbyville, and 
Lexington. Again we meet him at the session in 
Louisville in 1831. 

No Bishop in the Church could have received a 
more cordial welcome than did Bishop Roberts 
when he attended the Conference of 1833. He was 
not only familiar with the work in Kentucky, and 
the demands of the Church, but he was intimately 
acquainted with many of the preachers, and shared 
in the affections of all. 

If he did not bring to the holy office he so accept- 
ably and usefully filled pulpit talents of the highest 
order, yet we find him a clear and forcible preacher, 
with a mind richly stored with gems of gospel truth. 
If he did not rise to the loftiest heights of oratory, 
yet strains of impassioned eloquence often fell from 
his lips. He was a workman who needeth not to be 
ashamed. Throughout the West were to be found 

*It was either at this or a subsequent session of the Ten- 
nessee Conference that he reached the session the day after it 
opened. On taking the chair he proposed to explain to the 
Conference the cause of his delay: "I started from home one 
day later than I should have done," was the only explanation 
he gave. 

j The Kentucky Conference was organized in 1820. 



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his living epistles, known and read of all men. In 
all the walks of life pious men and women, brought 
to Christ through his instrumentality, adorned the 
circles in which they moved, and called him blessed. 

"William Adams was appointed Secretary; the 
preliminary business "occupied the first day of the 
session; the Committees on Public Worship, on the 
Book Concern, Finance, and on Memoirs, were ap- 
pointed. In addition to these, a special committee 
looking to the publication of a weekly paper in the 
West was appointed. This committee consisted 
of George C. Light, William P. McKnight, Henry 
B. Bascom, Jonathan Stamper, and Benjamin T. 
Crouch. 

Up to this period the West had depended chiefly, 
if not entirely, on the Christian Advocate and Journal, 
published in the city of New York, for Church in- 
telligence. Without the advantages of railroads, 
the mails were tardy in reaching their destination, 
and hence weeks would sometimes elapse before in- 
formation of importance could be received. Five 
large Conferences had already been organized in the 
West, to say nothing of the Tennessee, Holston, and 
the Conferences farther South. The Western States 
were rapidly filling up, and the Methodist Church 
was keeping pace with the population. To the 
Kentucky Conference, as well as to others equally 
interested, the establishment of a paper west of 
the Alleghany Mountains seemed essential to the 
growing demands of the Church. On the 17th day 
of the month the following report was submitted 
by the committee, and adopted : 



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79 



"In answer to the interrogatories proposed by the 
Agents at New York, respecting the publication of 
a weekly religious paper, kindred in character with 
the Christian Advocate and Journal, to be issued at 
the Book-room, Cincinnati, your committee give it 
as their opinion, briefly: 

"First, That the establishment of such a paper is 
not only expedient, but important to the interests 
of the Church in the "West. 

"Secondly, That the Agents and Book Committee 
at New York have the undoubted and constitutional 
right to establish such a paper. 

''Thirdly, That the power to appoint the editor 
belongs to the Agents and Book Committee, and 
grows naturally out of their right to establish a 
paper. 

"Fourthly, It is the opinion of your committee 
that, in making the appointment of editor, the 
Agents and Book Committee will be expected to 
consult the Western Conferences most interested in 
the paper proposed." 

The first number of the paper, with Thomas A. 
Morris as editor, under the title of Western Christian 
Advocate, was issued in the following April. 

At this session of the Conference a communica- 
tion from H. W. Rogers and John Saunders was 
read, proposing to publish a newspaper in the in- 
terest of the Church, in Kentucky, and asking for 
the patronage of the Conference. 

The Conference, believing that their allegiance 
was to the Church rather than to sustain an indi- 
vidual enterprise, promptly declined the proposi- 



80 



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tion.* They felt that if a paper were established in 
the West, worthy of the Church and capable of ex- 
erting an influence that would be felt, the Kentucky 
Conference must cooperate with other Conferences 
in sustaining it, and not fritter away their power to 
clo good by giving any countenance to an enterprise 
by which individual prosperity, and not the weal of 
the Church, would be promoted. 

While in the Kentucky Conference, at this period, 
there were men of high literary attainments, yet 
the majority of the body had not enjoyed the ad- 
vantages of a first-class education. The subject of 
education had, however, always been a popular one 
with both the ministry and laymen of the Methodist 
Church in Kentucky. Augusta College — the first 
Methodist institution of learning in this country 
— belonged conjointly to the Ohio and Kentucky 
Conferences, and both were pledged for its sup- 
port. 

A deputation from Augusta was present, to rep- 
resent the interests of that institution. The Con- 
ference appointed a committee, consisting of John 
Tevis, Jonathan Stamper, George C. Light, William 
Gunn, and Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, to confer with 
the deputation from the College, to take its interests 
into consideration, and "jointly report to the Con- 
ference as soon as convenient." 



* The following resolution was adopted : 

"Resolved, That the writers of this communication be in- 
formed by Brother Kavanaugh that, in the opinion of this 
Conference, it is inexpedient to attempt the establishment of 
a paper, as contemplated by said communication." 



We stern Cavaliers. 



81 



On the fourth day of the session the following 
report was submitted : 

" The committee appointed to confer with the 
deputation from Augusta College, having performed 
the duty assigned them, unite with said deputation 
in submitting to the Conference the following reso- 
lutions — unanimously — as their report: 

"Resolved, first, That the plan submitted to the 
Board of Trustees of Augusta College, for the en- 
dowment of professorships in said institution, and 
which has received the sanction of the Board, duly, 
and upon the basis of which the Ohio Annual Con- 
ference has recently endowed the 6 McKendree Pro- 
fessorship of Moral Science' in the Augusta College, 
is every way worthy of confidence, and obviously 
calculated to secure the prosperity and permanence 
of the institution. 

"Resolved, second, That this Conference adopt the 
plan proposed, and that we proceed immediately to 
the endowment of another professorship in the Col- 
lege. 

"Resolved, third, That we select for this purpose 
the Professorship of Mathematics, and that we give 
some suitable honorary designation, as suggested in 
the plan of endowment. 

"Resolved, fourth, That this Conference will 
promptly and perseveringly imitate the noble ex- 
ample of the Ohio Conference in creating the neces- 
sary fund for the endowment of the professorship 
selected." 

During the reading of these resolutions Bishop 
Roberts was in the chair. As soon as they were 
4* 



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adopted, he was courteously invited to vacate it, 
and George C. Light was called upon to occupy it, 
when the following resolution was submitted and 
unanimously adopted: 

"Resolved, That the professorship selected for en- 
dowment by the Kentucky Conference be denom- 
inated the 'Roberts Professorship of Mathematics/ 
in consideration of the untiring zeal and persever- 
ing fidelity, and to perpetuate the memory of the 
ministerial worth and almost unexampled efforts, 
of the Rev. Robert R. Roberts, Bishop of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, especially in the large 
amount of labor contributed by him in the "West, 
in building up and extending the limits and influ- 
ence of the Church, and thus effectually increasing 
its ability in the extension of benevolent enterprise, 
and the enlargement of its field of operation; and 
also in view of the fostering regard and paternal 
solicitude which he has uniformly evinced in be- 
half of the Institution, as originating in Western 
enterprise, and the first of Methodist origin in the 
United States, on which account it is believed there 
is obvious and high moral fitness in the honorary 
designation of the professorship agreed upon by 
the Kentucky Annual Conference in the adoption of 
this resolution." 

After properly acknowledging the courtesy shown 
him by the Conference, the Bishop resumed the 
chair. 

The appropriateness of the resolution will com- 
mend itself to every one. 'So minister, no Bishop, 
not even the devoted McKendree, had done more 



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83 



for the advancement of the Church in the West 
than had Bishop Eoberts. He had presided over 
the Kentucky Conference at almost every session 
since its organization, and his wisdom had safely 
guided them through difficulties on more than one 
occasion. 

The subject of ministerial support was still a very 
embarrassing one. Whether the preachers were 
successful or poor financiers was a question that ad- 
mitted of controversy. If receiving a less support 
than any other body of men, and living on it, was 
evidence of financial skill, then the premium should 
certainly be awarded them; but if the ability to 
induce liberality on the part of the people is neces- 
sary to entitle them to this distinction, they must 
abandon the claim; for surely the contributions of 
the Church were neither adequate to the support 
of the preachers nor equal to the ability of the 
Church. 

At this session of the Conference a committee of 
five was appointed, consisting of George C. Light, 
Edward Stevenson, William Holman, Henry B. 
Bascom, and Jonathan Stamper, to draft a financial 
system. 

The subject of temperance, in the following reso- 
lution, came before the Conference: 

"Resolved, That this Conference, before its ad- 
journment, form itself into a Temperance Society." 

Thomas Lasley, Hooper Crews, and George W. 
Taylor were appointed a committee to draft a Con- 
stitution for a Temperance Society, and to report 
on the following day. When the report was read, 



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Western Cavaliers. 



some objections were made to it, and it was recom- 
mitted. This was just on the eve of final adjourn- 
ment; and, as the committee could not possibly 
revise their report before the close of the session, 
the Conference adopted the following resolution : 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, That 
we will, in our several fields of labor, do what we 
can to promote the temperance enterprise now going 
forward in our country/' 

Intemperance, like a sirocco, was sweeping over 
the land, and spreading ruin through every com- 
munity. Along its path were blighted homes, 
ruined fortunes, and blasted characters. The tears 
of wives, mothers, and sisters, and the penury, and 
want, and grief of widows and orphans — made such 
by the tremendous curse — appealed to the popular 
heart to stay the dreadful evil. The appeal was 
irresistible. A grand movement for reform in this 
regard had been inaugurated, and the cause of tem- 
perance was commanding public attention as it had 
never done before. It was certainly proper for the 
Church to lead the van in this great moral reform. 
The Methodist Church in Kentucky was fully 
abreast with the spirit of the times, and at this 
early period took a proud position, from which 
sophistry, ridicule, and abuse have never been able 
to drive them. " Wine is a mocker, strong drink is 
raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not 
wise." They believed that the man who professes 
Christianity, and makes, vends, or uses ardent spirits 
as a beverage, does not " abstain from every appear- 
ance of evil/' but plainly violates the teachings of 



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85 



the word of God, and deserves not a place in the 
Church of Christ.* 

An address from " certain brethren/' of the 
Greenville Circuit, on the subject of dress, was read 
on Tuesday morning, the 17th of September, and 
laid on the table. At an afternoon session on the 
same day it was called up, and the consideration of 
the subject postponed until the ensuing Annual 
Conference. 

The address of these brethren recommended uni- 
formity in the style of dress, on the part of the 
members of the Conference. The Conference, how- 
ever, adopted the following resolution : 

" We, the members of the Kentucky Conference, 
being convinced of the propriety of uniformity in 
dress, therefore, 

"Resolved, That we will endeavor to return to old 
Methodism on this subject." 

We are not prepared to define the views of the 
brethren as to what " old Methodism on this subject" 
was. At this period we had never looked upon a 
Conference of Methodist preachers. Two years 
later, however, we enjoyed this pleasure, and were 

* The author was once at a fashionable dining, given him in 
an Eastern city, with several others. On the table were many 
bottles of wine, of which all partook except himself. One of 
the party, after drinking a glass of wine, handed him his glass, 
and requested him to pass it for replenishing. He placed the 
glass in front of his plate, when he repeated, "Will you pass 
my glass for more wine?" " I will not," was the reply ; "I have 
never passed any man's glass for wine, and never will." The 
host immediately took every bottle from the table, saying, at 
the same time, "I accept the reproof." 



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Western Cavaliers. 



struck with the absence of all uniformity in the 
style of their dress. The ordinary frock-coat was 
the style generally worn, the round and straight- 
breasted the exceptions. 

On the first day of the Conference it was resolved 
to observe the following Friday " as a day of fasting, 
or abstinence, and prayer to God for his blessings 
on " themselves and the work with which they might 
be intrusted. The members of the several Churches 
in Greensburg were invited to unite with them in 
this service. 

Quite a number of local preachers were elected 
to deacon's orders, among whom were Edward L. 
Southgate, Daniel Ruark, Joseph Sewell, John F. 
Strother, Thomas M. Smith, Harmon Bailey, Thomas 
H. Lyle, Garland Moore, Elijah Covington, Benja- 
min Hill, and Stephen Rogers. 

George Stivers, John Brown, James Weaver, and 
Thomas Brooks were elected to elder's orders. 

Among these names are some who took high rank 
in the ministry, and through more than a genera- 
tion exerted an influence for good. Some of them 
yet live to bless the Church and the world. 

The preaching during the session was remarkable 
not only for the clear and forcible manner in which 
the great truths of the gospel were presented, but 
for the unction and power that attended it. 

On Sunday, at eleven o'clock, Bishop Roberts 
preached in the Methodist Church, and was followed 
by William Adams, at three o'clock. At night 
Henry B. Bascom, Professor of Moral Science in 
Augusta College, and the most eloquent preacher 



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87 



in America, then in. the full vigor of manhood, also 
preached in the Methodist Church. The house was 
densely crowded, and hundreds stood at the doors 
and windows on the outside. For two hours, or 
longer, the immense multitude hung in breathless 
silence on his lips, while he told them of a Saviour's 
love, of a Redeemer crucified, of the sweet comforts 
of religion, of the joys of the blessed, and the hor- 
rors of the damned. The effect was wonderful. 
On Monday morning, in an appropriate resolution, 
signed by John James, Edward Stevenson, and 
William P. McKnight, he was requested to furnish 
a copy of the sermon for publication — the first re- 
quest of the kind that had ever been made by the 
Kentucky Conference. 

George C. Light was requested to preach the ser- 
mon in memory of Barnabas McHenry, Marcus 
Lindsey, and Joseph B. Power, and Tuesday after- 
noon, at two o'clock, was fixed as the time for this 
service. The occasion was one long to be remem- 
bered. Joseph B. Power had been called away in 
early manhood, before he had fully developed as a 
minister of Christ; for twenty-four years the name 
of Marcus Lindsey had been familiar to the Church, 
and for nearly- all that period he had been a gallant 
leader; while Barnabas McHenry had planted the 
standard of the cross in the West nearly half a 
century before. To portray the lives and labors of 
these excellent men — to follow them amid the varied 
scenes through which they had passed — to listen to 
the words of comfort, of exhortation, and of cheer 
which they had proclaimed — to contemplate the 



88 



We stern Cavaliers. 



thousands brought to Christ through their ministry 
— to catch the strains of more than mortal music as 
they fell from their dying lips, and then to accom- 
pany them to the great beyond, and hear the notes 
of welcome as they entered upon eternal life — was 
the privilege of the preacher on this occasion. 
Many were incited to higher aims and nobler pur- 
poses as they contemplated the characters of these 
cavaliers. 

At this session seventy-nine dollars and seventy-jive 
cents was reported for missions, and forty -two dollars 
and twenty-five cents for Publishing Fund, which, al- 
though small, was a handsome increase over that of 
the previous year. The preachers were still poorly 
supported, receiving less than for the previous year, 
while only one hundred and twenty-six dollars and 
forty-five cents was contributed by the Church, in 
the Conference, to make up the deficiencies and to 
support nineteen superannuated preachers and the 
widows and orphans of deceased preachers. The 
Conference was also authorized to draw on the Book 
Concern for four hundred dollars, and on the Charter 
Fund for seventy-five dollars. 

Edward L. Southgate, William Outten, Claiborne 
Pirtle, John W. Riggin, John Carr Harrison, Daniel 
Sherwood, Thomas E. Thompson, Elijah M. Bosley, 
Eli B. Crane, Alberry L. Alderson, and Moses Evans 
this year entered the list of cavaliers. 

Among those who, the year before, had joined 
their fortunes with this band of noble men, only 
one proposed to retire from the ranks — Joseph W. 
Shultz was discontinued, at his own request. 



Western Cavaliers. 



89 



Robert F. Turner, Isaac Malone, Samuel Heliums, 
Daniel H. Tevis, Moses Clampit, and William Mc- 
Reynolds, located. 

It is difficult for a faithful minister of the gospel 
to retire from the pastoral work. Called to preach 
the unsearchable riches of Christ, and having taken 
upon himself the vows of ordination, which bind 
him to devote his life to exhorting sinners to repent- 
ance, the consent of his mind to abandon a work to 
which he was pledged by every motive of happi- 
ness and of duty is not easily obtained. If health 
fails, or if the health of his family demands it, he 
may retire until the obstruction is removed; but 
nothing less than this can justify the surrender of 
duty. 

Robert F. Turner, Isaac Malone, Samuel Heliums, 
and Moses Clampit were unable, because of feeble 
health, to prosecute the duties of itinerant work. 
We have no information as to the motive which in- 
fluenced the location of William MeReynolds. He 
was a good and true man. Daniel H. Tevis had 
failed to attend to his work, and was located by the 
Conference. 

Of those who the previous year were on the list 
of the superannuated, only John Denham and Lit- 
tleton Fowler were placed on the effective list, the 
latter having been transferred to the Tennessee Con- 
ference. We have already referred to the location 
of Samuel Heliums and Moses Clampit, and the 
death of Barnabas McHenry and Joseph B. Power. 

To the list of the superannuated for this year 
are added the names of Richard Corwine, Thomas 



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Wester n Cavaliers. 



Waring, Milton Jamieson, Edward Stevenson, John 
Johnson, and Samuel Harrison. 

The appointments at the present Conference show 
that but few preachers were returned to the fields 
of labor they had occupied one year before. Wil- 
liam Gnnn, the sweet singer, was still the leader of 
the hosts in the Lexington District; Richard Ty- 
dings, in the Augusta; William Adams, in the Har- 
rodsburg; Benjamin T. Crouch, in the Louisville; 
and George W. Taylor, in the Greensburg. The 
only change that was made in the presiding elder- 
ship was the appointment of Isaac Collard, a good 
and true man. to the Hopkinsvilie District, in the 
place of John Johnson, whose health had failed, 
and who had been placed on the list of the superan- 
nuated. 

The Burlington Circuit was still served by James 
C. Crow, a most exemplary young preacher, while 
the eccentric Josiah TThitaker was returned to the 
Falmouth Circuit. On the Germantown Circuit we 
again seethe popular and zealous Francis Landrum, 
and on the Little Sandy the plain and unostentatious 
James H. Brooking. The Church in Mount Ster- 
ling had requested the reappointment of Henry S. 
Duke, and the Bishop had complied with their 
wishes; and Lewell Campbell, the sledge-hammer 
of the Conference, was permitted to remain on the 
Newcastle Circuit. With these exceptions, the 
preachers were sent to new charges. 

Before the lapse of a month every cavalier had 
entered fully upon the work to which he had been 
assigned. The revivals, which during the previous 



Western Cavaliers. 



91 



year had swept over the State, had somewhat abated, 
yet a deep religious feeling pervaded almost every 
community, and impressions had been made in favor 
of Methodism that would never be effaced. 

A more zealous band of men had never entered 
the itinerant ranks than those composing the Ken- 
tucky Conference at this period. Controlled by a 
single desire — the salvation of the souls of the peo- 
ple — there was no sacrifice they were unwilling to 
make, and no hardship which they would not cheer- 
fully encounter. Others might travel the paths that 
lead to wealth, to pleasure, to fame; but, influenced 
by duty, they regarded no danger too great to be 
braved, and no obstacle a serious hinderance to their 
progress. To build up the Church, to repair the 
waste places of Zion-, and to persuade sinners to be 
reconciled to Grod, were the aim and only business 
of their lives. They desired success, and their de- 
sire was fulfilled. 

The winter of 1833 and 1834 passed away with 
no special demonstration of Divine power. In the 
several Districts, however, some were added to the 
Church and converted to Glod. In the city of Lex- 
ington, under the faithful ministry of Hubbard H. 
Kavanaugh, there was a gracious revival, which com- 
menced on the 5th of January, 1834, at which one 
hundred and eighty-one persons joined the Church; 
while in the Lexington Circuit, whose preachers 
were the zealous Absalom Woolliscroft and the 
gifted William Phillips, more than three hundred 
persons were converted and became members of the 
Church. Lorenzo D. Parker, a son of consolation, 



92 



Western Cavaliers. 



and one of the sweetest-spirited preachers Ave ever 
knew, had charge of the Port William Circuit, 
which included the present town of Carrollton (then 
called Port William), at the mouth of the Kentucky 
River. Feeble in health, he prosecuted his work 
with a zeal which even his failing strength could 
not dampen, and success crowned his labors. In 
the early part of the year his circuit was blessed 
with some revival influence, which gradually deep- 
ened and widened until three hundred and thirteen 
souls " passed from death unto life." At Newport 
and Covington, where Joseph Marsee proclaimed 
the tidings of a Redeemer's love, at the third quar- 
terly-meeting, commencing on the 2d of May, in 
the city of Covington, thirty persons asked for 
membership in the Church, and on the following 
Tuesday evening, at a love-feast held in Newport, 
six others availed themselves of the same privilege. 

Passing to the Augusta District, we see Richard 
Tydings, the beloved disciple, leading to battle and 
to victory. In every part of his large District his 
influence is seen and his power felt. In the Ger- 
mantown Circuit, under the ministry of Francis 
Landrum and Richard Deering— the latter a mere 
youth, just admitted on trial, but w T ho had trav- 
eled the previous year on the Hinckstone Circuit, 
under the appointment of the Presiding Elder — God 
graciously revived his w r ork. Early in the month 
of May the good work began, and before the frosts 
of autumn more than one hundred persons em- 
braced religion. The Fleming Circuit enjoyed a 
richer display of Divine power. Under the indefat- 



Western Cavaliers. 



93 



igable labors of Richard Bird and Jolm W. Riggin 
more than two hundred persons cast in their lot 
with the people of God. The Lewis and Big Sandy 
Circuits — the former with the energetic Martin L. 
Eades, and the latter with the simple-hearted Thomas 
Hall and the young and promising Gilby Kelly, as 
the pastors — enjoyed times of refreshing from the 
presence of the Lord. In the Lewis Circuit there 
were nearly two hundred additions to the Church, 
and in the Big Sandy more than half that number 
became followers of the meek and lowly Jesus. 

In the Harrodsburg District the revival influence 
seemed to be confined to its more rugged portions. 
John Williams and Richard Holding — the latter 
one of the purest men we ever knew — traveled the 
Mount Vernon Circuit, and Carlisle Babbit, Elijah 
Sutton, and Moses Evans, the Cumberland Mission. 
In the Mount Vernon Circuit about fifty persons 
were added to the Church, and in the Cumberland 
Mission more than two hundred.* 



*In the Western Christian Advocate of June 11, 1834, Mr. 
Babbit writes: "This Mission is in the wilderness of Ken- 
tuck}', almost surrounded by high and rugged mountains, in- 
cluding three or four hundred miles of boundary, located on 
the head-waters of Cumberland River. Since September we 
have extended our labors and taken in eighteen preaching- 
stands on the head of Kentucky River. In some parts of 
this country Methodism has never been known, and the re- 
ligion of Jesus is an entire stranger. Numbers that have 
come to years of maturity had never heard a gospel-sermon, 
nor attended Divine service, previous to our arrival, as I have 
been credibly informed. Add to this, as near as I have been 
able to learn, a majority of the rising generation cannot read 



94 



Western Cavaliers. 



The Louisville District shows a large increase in 
the membership during this year. The Shelby and 
the Taylorsville Circuits show a small decrease, but 
in every other charge in the District there were ex- 
tensive revivals of religion. ~No cavalier was more 
devoted to his work, and none knew better how to 
marshal his forces, than Benjamin T. Crouch. Either 
in a defense or an attack, he had but few peers. 
His example impressed those associated with him 
with the importance of punctuality and promptness, 
and inspired them with a confidence that no diffi- 
culties could dampen.* 

For several'months previous to the Conference of 
1833 the" Shelby ville and Brick Chapel Station was 
left without a pastor, in consequence of the death of 
Marcus Lindsey. The names of the most distin- 
guished preachers in the State were mentioned in 
connection with that station for the ensuing year. 
Shelbyville had been served by such men as Tevis, 
Stevenson, Light, Stamper, and Lindsey, and the 
Church, comprising a membership distinguished for 
their intelligence and culture no less than for their 
enlightened piety, had a right to expect a preacher 
of experience to be sent to them. 

A young man had entered the Conference in 
1828, and for two consecutive years had traveled 



or spell, and you know there is something more than pulpit 
exertion to be attended to in cases of this kind. One hun- 
dred and forty-five have joined the Church since Conference." 

* For three years Mr. Crouch was our Presiding Elder. 
During this period he was never absent from a quarterly- 
meetirg in our work, and never reached one too late. 



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the Breckinridge Circuit ; in 1830 lie was stationed 
in Bowling Green; in 1831 he was appointed to the 
Grermantown Circuit, and in 1832 to the Cynthiana 
Station. In these several fields of labor he had 
accomplished good, and left behind him the savor 
of a good name; yet beyond these charges he was 
scarcely known. In 1833 he was sent to Shelby - 
ville and Brick Chapel, to succeed the gifted and 
sainted Lindsey. 

George W. Brush was born in Rockbridge county, 
Virginia, October 28, 1805. His mother, whose 
maiden name was Nancy Caven, was born in the 
Worth of Ireland; his grandmother on his mother's 
side — Elizabeth McCaw — was reared in Scotland, 
and belonged to the Kirk. Rockbridge county, Vir- 
ginia, had been the home of his paternal ancestry 
for several generations. His father — John Brush — 
and Blakeley Brush, his grandfather, were born in 
that county, and also his great-grandfather, who 
was killed by the Indians. John Brush removed to 
Kentucky in November, 1806, and settled in Shelby 
county, where his son remained until 1824, when we 
find him in Bullitt county, teaching a small country 
school. His parents were prominent and zealous 
members of the Presbyterian Church; and, although 
their son was distinguished rather for his wildness 
than for any adaptation to the pulpit, it was their 
earnest desire that he should become a minister in 
their Church. With but little or no inclination 
toward a religious life, he, however, attended preach- 
ing at the Church of his parents, occasionally vis- 
iting a Baptist or a Methodist meeting, when there 



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was no preaching in their Church. His mother, al- 
though prejudiced against the Methodists, was a 
woman whose piety was deep and uniform. On one 
occasion she attended a Methodist camp-meeting on 
a week-day. hardly thinking it proper for a Chris- 
tian woman to be found at such a place on the Sab- 
bath; and. in an account of the meeting she gave in 
her family, she said: " Some of the people were cook- 
ing, some talking, some coming, some going, and 
quite a number about the stand, where they were 
singing, praying, shouting, and, after awhile, preach- 
ing:" and she added: " But the one we heard spoke 
well, indeed, and seemed to be a good man, and well 
acquainted with the Scriptures." 

Young Brush had heard one or two local preachers 
in the Methodist Church, under whose ministry he 
had been made to feel uneasy; and under a sermon 
preached by Dr. Clelland he had been greatly 
alarmed, and in the church cried aloud for mercy. 
His religious impressions, however, were soon ef- 
faced, and in the society of wild associates he 
drowned the voice of conscience, and forgot the 
teachings of childhood. The first traveling preacher 
with whom he ever met was Benjamin T. Crouch, 
for whom he entertained feelings of the highest re- 
gard. 

In the autumn of 1826 Richard D. Neale, distin- 
guished for his zeal, was appointed to the Jefferson 
Circuit, which included Bullitt county, in which 
George W". Brush resided. Sociable in his disposition 
and courteous in his manner, the zealous preacher 
soon won upon the affections of the young school- 



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97 



master, who, through his instrumentality, was 
brought into the Methodist Church, and soundly 
converted to God. Feeling that he was called to 
preach the gospel, he reluctantly yielded to his con- 
victions, and on the 6th of October, 1828, he w r as 
licensed to preach by Marcus Lindsey, and at once 
entered the itinerant ranks. 

The appointment of G-eorge "W". Brush to the 
Shelby ville and Brick Chapel Station was unex- 
pected alike to the preacher aiMl the congregation. 
The Church, however, received him kindly, and in 
the spirit of the Master he entered upon his work. 
He reached his new field in due time, and preached 
at eleven o'clock, on the first Sunday, at the Brick 
Chapel, to a crowded audience, several of whom re- 
sided in Shelbyville. At night his appointment was 
in the town, and not only the Methodists, but the 
members of other Churches, were present to give 
him a welcome. The church was densely packed. 
The good John Tevis was sitting in the pulpit, and 
the pious William Atherton in the altar. A slender 
young man, with a pleasant countenance, nearly six 
feet high, weighing about one hundred and fifty 
pounds, with grayish-blue eyes and jet-black hair, 
entered the church, and walked into the pulpit. It 
tvas George W. Brush, the new preacher* He read 
his hymn, after which the congregation sang; he 
then prayed, and another hymn was read and sung. 
" Therefore let no man glory in men: for all things 
are yours; whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or 

* We resided in Shelbyville, and had just joined the Church, 
and were present on this occasion. 



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the world, or life, or death, or things present, or 
things to come; all are yours; and ye are Christ's; 
and Christ is God's/' was announced as the text. 
The sermon was brief, delivered in a plain, conver- 
sational style. In it there was nothing great, ac- 
cording to the estimation of the world; there was no 
rhetorical display, no burst of eloquence, no flash 
of lightning, no peal of thunder; it was the message 
of life and salvation, delivered not in " enticing 
words of man's wisdom," but in the simplicity of 
gospel truth. 

If in the pulpit Mr. Brush made a favorable im- 
pression upon the Church he was appointed to serve, 
in his social intercourse he made friends in every 
circle. Sociable in his disposition, and pleasant in 
his intercourse with the community, he won the 
hearts of the people in other Communions as well as 
in his own. As a preacher he was not considered 
great, yet crowds waited upon his ministry, and 
each person left the house of God, after hearing 
him, resolved to be better than ever before. His 
preaching was peculiar. Iso one preached as he 
did, and he copied from no other person. Short, 
pointed, practical sermons, from week to week, fell 
from his lips, and urged his congregation to a better, 
a holier, aud a higher life. Under his ministry a 
Bible-class was formed, of which he was the leader; 
the Sunday-school prospered; the prayer-meetings 
were well attended; the class-room was crowded, 
and prospects for a revival were more promising 
than they had been for many years. Everybody 
knew the preacher, and everybody loved him. He 



Western Cavaliers. 



99 



visited the homes of wealth and influence, and was 
the companion of the poor and the humble; his 
prayers went np from every family altar, and from 
the bedside of the sick and the dying. 

The winter was over; gentle spring, with its sun- 
shine and flowers, came and passed away. On the 
3d of June the third quarterly-meeting commenced. 
The Church had been looking to this occasion with 
prayerful interest. In the class-room the quarterly- 
meeting was talked of, and prayers were offered for 
a revival of the work of God. On the street mem- 
bers of the Church conversed freely on the subject 
of religion, and not only expressed the hope that 
souls would be converted during the meeting, but 
that much good would be done. From the com- 
mencement of the meeting the signs of the times 
were favorable for a general outpouring of the Spirit 
upon the people. The first night penitents were 
invited to the altar, and several persons presented 
themselves for the prayers of the Church, and two 
or three professed faith in Christ. As the meeting 
progressed the interest increased, and before a week 
had elapsed the altar was crowded with persons 
anxiously inquiring the way of life and salvation, 
and many had " passed from death unto life."* In 
the Western Christian Advocate of June 20 a letter 
from the pastor of the Church was published, dated 
June 11, in which he says:^ "Our third quarterly- 
meeting commenced eight days since, and we are 
holding it still. Fifty-eight whites and twenty-eight 

* Messrs. Crouch, Gunn, Stamper, Tevis, Atherton, Rice, and 
other preachers, were present and assisted at this meeting. 



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colored joined; fifty converted: meeting yet going 
on." 

As the meeting was protracted from day to day, 
and from week to week, its influence permeated the 
entire community, extending to every class of so- 
ciety, awakening the young and the old, embracing 
many heads of families — men and women of influ- 
ence — and reaching to those who had hitherto been 
impervious to the claims of religion.* Some who 
up to this time had discarded Christianity altogether, 
and were distinguished for their wickedness, recog- 
nized the claims of religion, bowed to the scepter of 
Christ, and became burning and shining lights in 
the Church of God, while many remembered "their 
Creator in the days of their youth," some of whom 
are yet living to adorn the profession they made.f 

During the entire meeting commendable zeal was 
displayed by the membership of the Church, who 
contributed largely to its success. They visited and 
conversed freely on the subject of religion with 
such as were serious, and bore an active part in the 

* The author's father and mother, also his uncle — Samuel 
Wise Topping, by whose charity he was brought up and edu- 
cated — -joined the Church at this time. 

f During the progress of the meeting Mr. Brush met on the 
street Thomas P. Wilson, an eminent lawyer, and Judge of the 
Circuit Court, and said to him: "Judge Wilson, what would 
you think of me if I were to remain here a year, and say 
nothing to you about saving your soul?" "I would regard 
you as a very unfaithful preacher," was the reply. "What 
does Mrs. Wilson think on this subject?" he then asked. 
"Call and see her, and inquire for yourself," replied the judge. 
On the Friday following this conversation Judge Wilson, with 
his wife and son, and sister-in-law, joined the Church. 



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101 



exercises of the altar. Among them no one con- 
tributed more to the interest than Mrs. Amanda 
McGrath,* a young and accomplished widow, deeply- 
pious and devoted to the Church. Gifted in prayer, 
her appeals before the throne of grace not only 
reached the ear of Jehovah, but melted many an 
obdurate heart.f 

The entire community was aroused, and not only 
the village, but the surrounding country, was in a 
blaze. From the rural districts the people came 
several miles to church, and many who were 
prompted to attend these meetings through curios- 
ity became awakened, and returned to their homes 
" clothed and in their right mind." Indeed, so great 
was the influence excited that a holy atmosphere 
seemed to surround the place of worship. J When 
the meeting closed nearly two hundred persons had 
been converted.§ 

While the Methodist Church in Shelbyville was 

"*Mrs. McGrath became the wife of the Rev. Richard Deering, 
and is the mother of the Rev. J ohn R. Deering, of the Ken- 
tucky Conference. 

f Her father, John McGraughey, Esq., was brought into the 
Church, at this meeting, through her instrumentality. 

X A gentleman said to the author, several years after this 
meeting, that when he entered the church -yard, during its 
progress, he felt a religious influence he could not express. 

§ A young man professed religion during this meeting, and 
joined the Methodist Church. His uncle and guardian, who 
was a prominent member of the Campbellite Church, was dis- 
satisfied with this step on the part of his nephew, and required 
him to withdraw from the Methodist Church and to join the 
Campbellite Church. This compulsion unsettled him in his 
religious character, and he soon became a wreck in his morals. 



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being so greatly blessed other denominations of 
Christians received valuable accessions to their 
Churches. 

The influence of this extraordinary revival did 
not stop with the close of the meeting. Two months 
later a camp-meeting was held at Cardwell's Camp- 
ground, three miles east of Shelbyville, and in the 
vicinity of the Brick Chapel. The meeting was one 
of great power. On one occasion during its prog- 
ress the heavens became black with angry clouds, 
fierce lightnings leaped along the sky, and thunder 
muttered solemn peals. The audience retired to 
the^tents. The rain fell in torrents — it was eleven 
o'clock in the forenoon — and at nightfall there was 
no abatement; the stars were still concealed, and 
the elements appeared to be engaged in angry strife. 
Peace and joy, however, reigned within the tents. 
Preaching, exhortation, singing, prayer, followed in 
quick succession ; cries for mercy rent the air ; 
shouts of converted souls pierced the heavens ; the 
Church partook of the joy. On that memorable 
night about forty souls were converted.* IsTearly 
one hundred persons professed religion at that 
camp-meeting. 

William B. Landrum was born in Fluvanna 
county, Virginia, May 14, 1803. He entered the 
Conference the same year with George W. Brush. 
The great-grandfather of Mr. Landrum was a 
Scotchman, but emigrated to America at an early 
day, and settled in Virginia. His grandfather — 

"The author's mother, who had joined the Church in June 
preceding, as a seeker of religion, was converted that night. 



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103 



Francis Landrum — who was born in Essex county, 
Virginia, September 19, 1739, became a Methodist 
preacher, and was identified with Asbury, Waters, 
Drumgoole, Poythress, and others, who laid the 
foundation of Methodism in that State, a hundred 
years ago. 

From the introduction of Methodism into this 
country, the family of William B. Landrum had 
been identified with the Methodist Church. At the 
knees of his mother he was early taught the prin- 
ciples of religion, and before the removal of his 
parents to Kentucky, which occurred in the autumn 
of 1810, his impressions on the subject were deep 
and abiding. They spent the first winter after their 
removal to Kentucky at Boonsboro, in Madison 
county; but in the following spring they removed 
to Clarke county, where they settled permanently. 
A " meeting-house " — a rude log building, with dirt 
floor, situated on the land of Thomas Landrum — 
belonging to the Hinckstone Circuit, was the "tem- 
ple" where the Landrum family attended circuit 
preaching. The pulpit from which the preacher 
dispensed the word of life had a puncheon floor, 
and two forks driven into the ground, with a cross- 
piece, for a hand-board. Although the circuit was 
large, embracing several counties, every two weeks 
the gospel was preached in this neighborhood. Such 
men as kelson, Khoton, McMahon, Lakin, Stamper, 
and Hunt traveled this circuit, and under their min- 
istry, with the instructions of a pious home, the 
religious character of William B. Landrum was 
formed. 



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Western Cavaliers. 



In the summer of 1821, while reading "Baxter's 
Call to the Unconverted,' 7 he was powerfully awak- 
ened to a sense of his condition as a sinner, and on 
the 26th of August he joined the Church as a seeker 
of religion. It was not, however, until the spring 
of 1822 that he obtained the forgiveness of his sins. 
Soon after his conversion he was placed in the re- 
sponsible position of class-leader. In 1827 he was 
licensed to exhort, and in 1828 to preach. 

At the Conference of 1828 he was admitted on 
trial, and appointed to the Little River Circuit, with 
William Cundiff. In 1829 we find him on the Som- 
erset Circuit, with Elijah Knox as his colleague. In 
1830 his field of labor is the Henry Circuit, with 
William Helm, and in 1831 he travels the Lewis 
Circuit alone. At the Conference of 1832 his name 
appears in connection with the Livingston Circuit, 
in the Hopkinsville District, having Xapoleon B. 
Lewis, who was employed by the Presiding Elder, 
as his colleague. 

At his first quarterly-meeting on the Little River 
Circuit, Mr. Landrum received fifty cexts quarter- 
age, and t w e x ty - five cexts to meet his expenses for 
traveling from Shelby ville, the seat of the Confer- 
ence, to Christian county, a distance of about two 
hundred miles. Thirty-five dollars was paid him 
for the entire year. 

On the Somerset Circuit, which embraced the 
counties of Wayne, Pulaski, Russell, Adair, and 
Casey, he received thirty-three dollars during the 
year. On the Henry Circuit his receipts were fifty 
dollars, and on the Lewis sixty dollars. In all these 



We stern Cavaliers . 



105 



fields of labor Mr.Landrum was a useful minister 
of Jesus Christ. Notwithstanding his meager sup- 
port, no murmur falls from his lips, but in his Au- 
tobiography, now before me, he dwells upon the 
kindness of the people. Hundreds of miles fre- 
quently separated him from his parents, but, with 
true filial affection, he never failed to visit them 
twice a year. 

At the Conference of 1833, with Foster H. Blades 
— the smooth-faced boy to whom we alluded in 
Chapter I. — as his colleague, he was appointed to 
the Hartford Circuit, which was embraced in the 
Louisville District. 

The Hartford Circuit was one of the oldest in the 
Conference, appearing in the Minutes as early as 
1804. In this circuit Mr. Landrum was thrown 
among a people where Methodism had been long 
established, and where a field of usefulness presented 
itself, upon which he entered with energy and zeal. 

His colleague had joined the ministry one year 
before, when only sixteen years of age. He had at- 
tended a camp-meeting in Shelby county when but 
fifteen years old — a wild, uneducated boy. Fond 
of music, he had purchased a fiddle, and carried it 
with him to the camp-ground, for the purpose of 
amusement. Hardly, however, had he reached the 
inclosure before the Holy Spirit arrested him, and 
cries for mercy fell from his penitent lips. He was 
converted; and believing that he was called of God 
to preach the gospel, and yet without the first rudi- 
ments of education, he applied to a lady who was 
teaching a small country school in his neighborhood 
5* 



106 



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for admission into her school, and was kindly re- 
ceived, although unable at the time to pay her a 
farthing.* At the close of eight months, being only 
sixteen years of age, he was licensed to preach, and 
recommended to the Kentucky Conference. The 
Conference admitted him, and he was appointed by 
the Bishop to the Breckinridge Circuit, as the col- 
league of William Helm. He was tall and slender, 
with light hair and deep blue eyes. Remarkably 
sprightly and earnest in the work to which he was 
called, he at once took rank among the young men 
of promise in the Conference. 

In speaking of Mr. Blades, Mr. Landrum says 
"he was a nice young man, with considerable 
preaching ability." 

No two preachers, on any charge in the Confer- 
ence, labored more earnestly than did these. Their 
circuit was soon in a flame, and revivals visited 
every portion of their work. 

In the Jefferson Circuit, Charles M. Holliday and 
Hooper Evans, both in the prime of manhood, and 
distinguished for their zeal, were eminently useful. 
From the time they entered upon their labors until 
the 3d of June one hundred and thiity-seven per- 
sons had joined the Church, and nearly all of them 
had been converted. On the 4th of September Mr. 
Holliday writes to the Western Christian Advocate: 
"At our last quarterly-meeting a camp-meeting was 
held at Hughes's Camp-ground, commencing Au- 

* At his first quarterly-meeting, on the Breckinridge Cir- 
cuit, he sent her eight dollars — which was all he received at 
the time — the amount he owed for eight months' schooling. 



Western Cavaliers. 



107 



gust 8th, and closing the 12th. Twenty-one were 
converted, and twenty -four joined the Church. 
Thirty-two joined at Cane Run, in September. Two 
hundred and thirty-three joined during the year." 

In the Breckinridge Circuit, whose preachers 
were Stephen Harber and William Gr. Bowman — the 
former remarkable for the neatness of his apparel, 
and the latter for the earnestness with which he de- 
livered his message — there were extensive revivals 
of religion. The Yellow Banks Circuit included 
not only the beautiful town of wensboro, but all of 
Davis and Hancock counties, and portions of Ohio 
and Muhlenberg. To this immense field Thomas 
W. Chandler was appointed. When he first entered 
the ministry it was said of him by an intelligent 
gentleman of another Communion, who heard him 
preach, "Dress a fence-rail in the clothes of a Meth- 
odist preacher, and he can surpass any of our college 
graduates." During the year there was great pros- 
perity, and at the camp-meeting at Pleasant Grove, 
which commenced July 18, "many found peace." 

Thomas B. Farmer, a plain gospel-preacher, and 
Lewell Campbell, a son of thunder, traveled the 
Newcastle Circuit, and reported large accessions to 
the Church. 

Turning to the Hopkinsville District, & consid- 
erable decrease in the membership appears in the 
Minutes. In the Logan Circuit, however, under 
the ministry of Thomas "Wallace and William S. 
Evans, both of whom were faithful ministers of 
Christ, there were times of refreshing from the 
presence of the Lord, Mr. Wallace writes, May 



108 Western Cav A L I E R S . 



28, to the Western Christian Advocate: "More than 
one hundred have been added to the Church since 
Conference." There was also considerable pros- 
perity in the Livingston Circuit, whose preachers 
were Abram Long — who for several years had been 
an itinerant — and Joseph D. Barnett, a young cava- 
lier, full of daring as well as energy and zeal. 

In every other charge in this District there was a 
falling oft* in the membership, the largest decrease 
being in the Henderson Circuit, amounting to one 
hundred white and five colored. 

The Green sburg District presented a less favora- 
ble report. The decrease in this District was two 
hundred in the white membership, and forty-six in 
the colored. In every charge, with the exception of 
the Glasgow Circuit, the membership was smaller 
than at the previous Conference. Jesse Sutton, a 
preacher of more than ordinary ability — with Eli B. 
Crain, a promising young man, for his colleague — 
traveled this circuit. On the 3d of July Mr. Crain 
wrote: "Our Church is now in a flourishing state. 
Many have been added to the Church."* Under 
the ministry of G. M. Campbell there was a gracious 
revival of religion in Glasgow, resulting in the con- 
version of many souls to God. 

It frequently occurs that revivals of religion ex- 
cite opposition to the Church of Christ on the part 
of those who are unfavorable to any demonstration 
on this subject. It was so in Glasgow. The Camp- 
bellite Church, under the leadership of Joseph 
Davis, made an attack on Methodism, which re- 

* Western Christian Advocate, July 18, 1834. 



Western Cavaliers. 



109 



suited in a controversy between Mr. Davis and Mil- 
- ton Jamieson, of the Kentucky Conference. Mr. 
Jamieson was an able and experienced debater, and 
familiar with the points at issue. His triumph was 
complete, leaving his opponents to regret the folly 
and madness of the attack they had made. 

It is gratifying, however, while we lament any 
falling off in the membership of a single District, 
to be able to record an increase in the entire Con- 
ference of six hundred and sixty white members, 
although there was a decrease in the colored of one 
hundred and seventeen. 

Turning to the Wadesboro and Hickman Circuits, 
in the Tennessee Conference, we still find George 
W. D.Harris the Presiding Elder, while George W. 
Martin and George W. Casey are the preachers on 
the Wadesboro Circuit, and Wilie B. Edwards and 
Thos. L. Boswell on the Hickman. In both of 
these fields of labor there were extensive revivals 
of religion, although in the Hickman Circuit the 
General Minutes show a decrease in both the white 
and colored membership — in the former seventy-nine, 
and in the latter twenty-nine. In the Wadesboro 
Circuit the increase was one hundred and forty -three 
in the white membership, and two in the colored — 
making the total increase in Kentucky seven hun- 
dred and thirty-two in the white membership, and a 
decrease in the colored of one hundred and forty - 
four. 

Two preachers had fallen during the year; but 
they fell at their posts. Thomas P. Vance and 
William P. McKnight had entered the itinerant field 



110 



Western Cavaliers. 



together, in 1829, and closed their careers within 
the same Conference-year — the former having died 
on the 6th of October, 1833, and the latter on the 
30th day of the following June. Both passed away 
in triumph.* 

* For fuller sketches of Thomas P. Vance and William P. 
McKnight see the " History of Methodism in Kentucky," vol. 
iii., pp. 454, 458. 



Western Cavaliers. 



Ill 



CHAPTER III. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1834 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1835. 

Although the vine its fruit deny, 

Although the olive yield no oil, 
The with'ring fig-tree droop and die, 

The field illude the tiller's toil, 
The empty stall no herd afford, 

And perish all the bleating race — 
Yet will I triumph in the Lord, 

The God of my salvation praise. 

THE session of the Kentucky Conference for 
1834 was held in Mount Sterling, commencing 
on the 10th day of September. Bishop Soule pre- 
sided, and "William Adams was chosen Secretary. 

"Joshua Soule * was born in Bristol, Maine — then 
a province belonging to Massachusetts — August 1, 
1781. He was the fifth son of Joshua and Mary 
Soule. His father was the eldest son of Joseph 
Soule, a descendant of George Soule, one of the 
Pilgrim Fathers who came to New England in the 
"Mayflower." His father was captain of a mer- 
chant-vessel and a whaler, and would have con- 

* Bishop McTyeire, in Nashville Christian Advocate, March 
14, 1867. 



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Western Cavaliers. 



tinued in a sea-faring life but for the loss of his 
vessels during the Revolutionary "War. After this 
he devoted himself to the pursuit of agriculture. 
At the time of the birth of their son Joshua, they 
belonged to a Scotch Presbyterian congregation, 
under the pastorate of the Rev. Mr. McLain. After 
their removal to the country their house was a home 
for all ministers, who preached in it, but organized 
no Church. * 

" The first Methodist preacher who came into their 
neighborhood was Jesse Lee. This apostle of New 
England Methodism was the first Methodist minis- 
ter Joshua ever heard. This was about 1793. He 
joined the Methodist Episcopal Church in the spring 
of 1797 — two preachers having been sent on a cir- 
cuit which embraced his home. His parents and 
friends were violently opposed to his becoming a 
Methodist, and he joined the Church under full ex- 
pectation of being banished from his father's house. 
Before taking this step he conferred with his parents 
in reference to it. He challenged them to adduce an 
instance in which he had ever disobeyed them. He 
assured them that it would afford him the greatest 
pleasure in life to join the Methodist Church with 
their consent; but join it he must. His mother was 
almost distracted. His father, however, never pro- 
hibited him from going to meeting. On one occa- 
sion he asked his father to accompany him to hear 
one of his ministers — the Rev. Mr. Stebbins. He 
said, 'No; they are all alike.' Joshua expressed 
the hope that his father's law judged no man before 
he was heard. After dinner his father ordered two 



Western Cavaliers. 



113 



horses, and accompanied his son to the meeting. 
Mr. Stebbins preached a powerful sermon. After 
the service Joshua introduced his father to Mr. Steb- 
bins, who, on invitation, went home with Captain 
Soule. Joshua told Mr. Stebbins about his father, 
and advertised him that he might expect contro- 
versy. Accordingly, after supper they entered the 
lists — not without some apprehension on the part of 
Joshua, as his father was strong on the dogmas in 
question. But Mr. Stebbins got the better in the 
argument, and Captain Soule felt it. After break- 
fast the next morning he invited Mr. Stebbins to 
preach in his house. This he did the next round, to 
a large congregation — two or three Baptist ministers 
being present. The sermon was a powerful one — 
on the vision of the dry bones, in Ezekiel. From 
that time Captain Soule's house was a regular 
preaching-place. In less than six months after 
Joshua joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, his 
father, mother, two brothers, and two sisters joined 
it, also. Some years after, his parents died in the 
communion of the Church, and in holy triumph. 

" Joshua Soule was never an exhorter or a local 
preacher. He received license to preach, and recom- 
mendation to the itinerancy, from a Quarterly Con- 
ference, in the latter part of the year 1798; he trav- 
eled under the Presiding Elder until the session of 
the Annual Conference in June, 1799. He was ad- 
mitted on trial by the New England Conference at 
that session, and was appointed to Portland Circuit, 
in Maine — Timothy Merritt being the preacher in 
charge, and Joshua Taylor the Presiding Elder. It 



114 



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was a four weeks' circuit, five hundred miles in cir- 
cumference, and comprising twenty-seven appoint- 
ments. 

"In 1800 he was sent to Union River, the lowest 
circuit in Maine, embracing the Penobscot, and ex- 
tending to the British lines. That year he had no 
colleague. 

"In 1801 he was sent to the Sandwich Circuit, 
near Cape Cod, without a colleague. 

"In 1802 he was sent to Needham Circuit, with 
Thomas Percy as an assistant. 

"At the close of his second year he started to 
Conference, at Boston, by sea, but did not reach 
there until after the close of the session; he was, 
however, admitted into full connection, and elected 
deacon. At the close of his third year he was or- 
dained deacon, at Cranston, Rhode Island, by Bishop 
Whatcoat; and at the close of his fourth year he 
was ordained elder by the same Bishop. 

"In 1803 he received his fifth appointment, which 
was to Nantucket, without a colleague. This year 
he was married to Miss Sarah Allen, an orphan, in 
Providence, Rhode Island. With her he lived in 
connubial felicity for fifty-four years. We shall 
never forget his look of sorrow and hope when, in 
May, 1857, we consigned her remains to the tomb. 

"In 1805 and 1806 he was Presiding Elder of a 
District which embraced the entire territory of 
Maine, twelve hundred miles in circumference, com- 
prising twelve circuits and one station. He visited 
the remotest settlements, and lodged in wretched 
cabins, frequently covered with snow, which beat in 



Western Cavaliers. 



115 



upon him. Sometimes, indeed, he had to sleep out 
in the frost, having the snow for his bed and the 
sky for his covering. He swam streams and en- 
countered many other hardships. During the two 
years that he was on that District, and counting 
every day that he spent at home, he was only three 
weeks with his young wife. This, he assured us, he 
never could have done if she had not been an extra- 
ordinary woman, and encouraged him in his arduous 
and self-denying work. 

"In 1806 and 1807, the District being divided, he 
traveled the lower part, known as the Kennebeck 
District. Bishop Asbury said, when he made the 
appointment, that he gave Joshua Soule the eastern 
section, which was much harder than the other, as 
he feared that Oliver Beale, who was appointed to 
the upper portion, would break down on the lower. 
During these two years he performed a vast amount 
of laborious service. The next four years he was 
Presiding Elder on the lower, or Portland, District. 

"In 1808 he attended the General Conference, in 
Baltimore. At that session the plan of a delegated 
General Conference was adopted, and the grave re- 
sponsibility was devolved upon him to draw up the 
Constitution as it now appears in the Book of Dis- 
cipline. 

"In 1812 he was stationed in Lynn. That year 
he attended the session of the General Conference 
held in New York. The next three years he trav- 
eled the Kennebeck District. 

"He was a member of the General Conference 
of 1816, at which he was elected Book Agent and 



116 



Western Cavaliers. 



editor of the Methodist Magazine. Tor four years 
he performed the arduous and apparently incom- 
patible duties of these offices with great fidelity. 
His position as Book Agent was at first singularly 
embarrassing. The Book Concern was insolvent; 
it could not get discount for five hundred dollars. 
The stock was old and comparatively valueless. 
His predecessor, Daniel Hitt, was a good and faith- 
ful man, but did not possess the requisite business 
qualifications for an undertaking so difficult and re- 
sponsible. Mr. Soule immediately opened new 
books; and as a loan of money was indispensable, 
he procured it from the Mechanics' Bank, in Balti- 
more — his friends, Philip Littig and John Bryce, 
indorsing for him. The Book Concern prospered 
under his administration. He had no difficulty 
afterward in getting all the money he wanted, even 
during the tremendous financial crisis which oc- 
curred while he was in the agency. He made the 
Magazine a useful and interesting miscellany — the 
more so as this was before the era of Christian Advo- 
cates. But we have frequently heard him decry his 
own editorial capacity, pleasantly observing that 
the editing of the Magazine was a work of darkness, 
as it was performed chiefly at night, after the daily 
duties of his agency were closed. 

"In 1820 he was succeeded, as Agent and editor, 
by Dr. Bangs, being himself elected to the Episco- 
pate. He, however, respectfully declined consecra- 
tion, in view of what is known as the Presiding 
Elder question. He never would consent to exe- 
cute the office of Bishop if the Presiding Elders 



Western Cavaliers. 



117 



were elected by the Annual Conference. He always 
considered that act as one of great importance; and 
Bishop Waugh told him, in after years, that by his 
firmness on that occasion he saved the Church. 
That year he was stationed in the city of New York. 

"In 1821 he was stationed in New York, as 
preacher in charge. 

" In 1822 and 1823 he was preacher in charge of 
the Churches in Baltimore City Station. Here he 
was greatly beloved and admired. When, some 
years after, we followed him as junior preacher in 
the same station, we found that his name was as 
ointment poured forth. 

"The session of the Baltimore Conference for 
1824 was held in Winchester, Virginia. Although 
strong opposition was made to him, because of his 
decided stand on the Presiding Elder question, yet 
he was elected to the General Conference, and his 
name stood first in the list of delegates. His oppo- 
nents — Messrs. Emory, Waugh, Griffith, and Mor- 
gan — were all left out. In after years they all saw 
their error, and made honorable apologies to Bishop 
Soule for the course they had pursued. At the 
General Conference, which was held that year in 
Baltimore, he was reelected to the Episcopate, and 
was ordained by Bishops McKendree, George, and 
Roberts. From that time until he was forced by 
the weight of years and increasing infirmities to re- 
tire from active service, he was abundant in labors, 
scorning ease and self-indulgence, consecrating all 
his powers to the difficult and responsible work 
which had been assigned him by the Church." 



118 



Western Cavaliers. 



Bishop Soule was first present at the Kentucky 
Conference which was held in Shelbvville in 1824, 
when Bishops McKendree and Eoberts were also in 
attendance. In 1826, with Bishop Roberts, he at- 
tended the session of the Conference in Louisville, 
and in 1827 at Versailles, with Bishops McKendree 
and Roberts. In 1828, with Bishop Roberts, he was 
again present in Shelbvville, and in 1830 he presided 
alone over the Conference in Russellville. His pres- 
ence at the session of 1834 was peculiarly gratifying 
to the body over which he presided. 

Among the resolutions adopted by the Conference 
on the first day of the session, the following de- 
serves a prominent place: 

"Resolved, That the members of this Conference 
will in future be more diligent in the observance of 
the rule of Discipline which is as follows: 6 Every 
Presiding Elder, minister, and preacher shall do 
every thing in his power to recover all debts due the 
Book Concern/"* 

It was the policy of the Agents in charge of the 
Book Concern, at this early day, under the instruc- 
tions of the General Conference, to place the publi- 
cations of the Church on sale at eligible points, or, 
what was almost as disastrous, to sell them to the 
preachers on time. Many of the preachers traveled 
on circuits which failed to meet their expenses for 
the year, yet had promised to do so. The preacher, 
believing that his claims would be fully met before 
the close of the year, and not being required to pay 
for his books until the Conference, did not deem it 
"""See Discipline for 1S34, Part II., sec. 8, page 156. 



Western Cavaliers. 



119 



improper to use the money received for books, ex- 
pecting to replace the amount from his quarterage 
receipts. The Church, however, was unmindful of 
its obligations, and in too many instances the faith- 
ful pastor had to leave his charge, to whom he had 
ministered "in season and out of season," only half 
paid, and frequently his receipts fell below one- 
half. The result was obvious: his account with the 
Book Concern must go unpaid. In other instances 
preachers largely in debt to the Book Concern would 
die, and the limited means left by them for the sup- 
port of their families could not well be spared to 
meet an obligation in this direction. 

Another evil growing out of the credit system 
was that the preachers were disposed to supply the 
people with their books on the same terms which 
had been granted themselves — that is, to be paid 
for before the close of the year. Thus, fifty or one 
hundred dollars' worth of books, in small amounts, 
were scattered over a large circuit, embracing several 
counties. Under the most favorable circumstances, 
to collect all these debts would be impossible; be- 
sides, frequently a purchaser might forget that he 
owed the preacher, and the preacher would be too 
diffident to present the account. We have known 
some preachers who have become financially bank- 
rupt by adopting this policy, while others, because 
they had been unable to collect the money due them 
on their circuits and stations, declined selling books 
in future. 

If the policy of the Book Concern had been dif- 
ferent — if the business from the commencement had 



120 



Western Cavaliers. 



been conducted on a cash basis — all parties would 
have been better satisfied. 

On the credit system, in Kentucky a large debt 
was due the Book Concern, a considerable portion 
of which was against the preachers themselves. 
The success and interest of an institution dear to 
the Church demanded that these obligations be met, 
and be met at once. Indeed, many of the preachers 
indebted to the Concern felt that to impress upon 
the people they served the duty of promptitude, 
while they seemingly lacked this virtue themselves, 
would be worse than useless; and hence they re- 
solved to meet their responsibilities in this matter, 
at whatever cost on the score of economy. 

While some of the preachers became involved by 
the failure of their people to pay them for books, 
there were others in the Conference who supple- 
mented their salaries from this department of their 
work. They felt it to be their duty to circulate the 
literature of the Church, but deemed it proper that 
those whom they served should pay them for the 
books they purchased. We have known preachers 
who realized the larger portion of their support 
from the energy they displayed in the sale and cir- 
culation of books; and there is perhaps no preacher 
who may not derive valuable aid from this source, 
if he gives it proper attention.* 

Apprehensions were entertained by the Confer- 
ence at this period that the itinerant system was 

* We know a preacher who from the profits realized on the 
sale of books in his circuit supported a widowed mother, and 
aided in the education of two brothers and two sisters, and 



Wester x Cavaliers 



121 



likely to be impaired by the formation of so many 
stations, as distinct from circuits. In the Kentucky 
Conference there were at this time, besides the six 
Districts, fifty -three separate charges, twelve of 
which were stations. 

In order to correct a tendency which they deemed 
subversive of a system which had operated so success- 
fully in "spreading scriptural holiness " throughout 
the country, the following resolution was submitted 
on the first afternoon of the session: 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, That the Bishop and 
Presiding Elders, in the arrangement of circuits and 
stations within the bounds of this Conference, be 
respectfully requested to connect with each station 
a sufficient number of appointments to constitute 
them circuits, or, where that is impracticable, to 
connect them with the adjacent circuits." 

A motion was made to lay this resolution on the 
table, which was, however, withdrawn. The reso- 
tion was then referred to a committee of seven, to 
be appointed by the Bishop, and George C. Light, 
Henry B. Bascom, J ohn Tevis, Joseph S. Tomlinson, 
Edward Stevenson, Milton Jamieson, and Jonathan 
Stamper were appointed the committee. 

If we do not concur in the sentiment that the 
formation of stations imperiled the itinerant sys- 
tem, to which we were attached in our youth, in 
our early manhood, and to which we are still de- 
purchased and owns handsome property. He has sold many 
thousands of dollars' worth, and never lost but one debt, which 
was four dollirs. 
6 



122 



Western Cavaliers. 



voted, yet we cannot but admire the vigilance of our 
fathers over it — a vigilance that would not allow the 
least encroachment. 

On Friday morning the committee submitted the 
following report, which was adopted: 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, That the Bishop and 
Presiding Elders, in the arrangement and supply of 
the circuits and stations within the bounds of this 
Conference, be respectfully requested to connect with 
each station, as early as practicable, a sufficient num- 
ber of appointments to constitute them, in fact, cir- 
cuits, to be formed of places not previously occupied, 
or of such appointments, belonging to contiguous cir- 
cuits, as may be agreed upon by the parties interested, 
in accordance with the provisions of the Discipline." 

That there was a disposition to disconnect from 
the circuits, in many instances, small towns, and 
form them into separate charges, will be obvious to 
any one who will examine the history of the Church 
at this period. Very frequently, by such mi ar- 
rangement, a good circuit was greatly weakened, 
and a small station was formed without sufficient 
strength to support a married preacher, and, with 
one destitute of experience, was unable to compete 
with other pulpits. 

At the Conference of 1832 the question "What 
has been contributed for missions?" was asked for 
the first time, and it was repeated at the two sessions 
following. IsTo steps, however, had been taken to 
form the Conference into a Missionary Society until 
the session of 1834. 



Western Cavaliers. 



123 



On the second day of the session the amount con- 
tributed during the year for missions was reported, 
and found to be only $269.30, which, although an 
improvement on the receipts of the previous year, 
was inadequate to the demands, as well as a reflec- 
tion upon the liberality, of the Church. 

Without an organization and unity of purpose 
and effort but little improvement could be expected. 
Here and there might be found a solitary preacher, 
abreast with the spirit of the times, who would com- 
mend the missionary enterprise to the people he 
served; but the majority of them would fail to pre- 
sent or advocate the cause. The preachers needed 
instruction, in most instances, no less than the people 
they were commissioned to teach. 

Immediately after the report was read it was pro- 
posed that the Conference form itself into a Mis- 
sionary Society, auxiliary to the Parent Society of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, located in the city 
of New York. A constitution was adopted for 
present purposes, and Milton Jamieson, Henry B. 
Bascom, and John Tevis were appointed a commit- 
tee to revise it, and report at the ensuing session. 
The following officers were elected : President, the 
presiding Bishop; First Vice-president, Jonathan 
Stamper; Second Vice-president, Henry B. Bascom; 
Treasurer, Hubbard H. Kavanaugh; Corresponding 
Secretary, William Adams; Recording Secretary, 
John Tevis. Managers: Joseph S. Tomlinson, 
Richard Tydings, William Phillips, Benjamin T. 
Crouch, Isaac Collard, John James, Henry Mc- 
Daniel, George W. Brush, George W. Taylor, 



124 



W estern Cavaliers. 



Henry S. Duke, Joseph Marsee. James Ward was 
appointed one of the Vice-presidents of the Parent 
Society. An Agent was also appointed for the Mis- 
sionary Society, whose duty it should be to travel 
through the Conference, deliver sermons on the sub- 
ject, form societies, take up collections, and awaken, 
as far as possible, general interest in behalf of the 
enterprise. This pleasant duty was intrusted to 
Milton Jamieson, 

For several sessions the subject of Colonization 
had occupied a prominent place in the discussions 
of the Conference, and Agents had been appointed 
for the advancement of the scheme. 

The Kentucky Colonization Society had sent to 
Liberia Joseph Jones, a man of color, and of more 
than ordinary intelligence and undoubted piety, for 
the purpose of ascertaining all that was requisite in 
reference to the Colony in Africa — the soil, climate, 
and productions. He had returned from his tour 
of observation, and was present at the session of 
the Kentucky Conference. The Kentucky Confer- 
ence had no sympathy with Abolitionists. They 
believed the principles advocated by them to have 
been born in fanaticism, and fraught with mischief 
to society, and subversive of the American Union : 
and hence they repudiated alike the doctrines they 
taught and those who taught them. They, how- 
ever, believed that the shores of Africa ottered an 
asylum and a home for the free man of color, where 
he might build for himself a government, and be 
useful and happy: hence, at all times, they favored 
the measures by which their colonization might be 



Western Cavaliers. 125 



effected, and on this occasion appointed Richard 
Corwine — a man who enjoyed the confidence of all 
who knew him — as the Agent for this Society. 

Twenty-two preachers were admitted on trial at 
this session: Ezekiel Mobley, Henry Edmundson, 
Peter Taylor, Reuben "W. Landrum, Robert Fisk, 
James M. Buchanan, Daniel S. Barksdale, Robinson 
E. Sidebottom, Solomon Pope, Alexander Robinson, 
Clinton Kelly, Thomas Rankin, James D. Holding, 
Henry 1ST. Vandyke, John C. Mblack, George W. 
Merritt, George W. Simcoe, William M. Grubbs, 
George Switzer, Albert Kelly, Napoleon B. Lewis, 
and Matthew 1ST. Lasley. 

Of those who entered the itinerant field one year 
before, the names of Claiborne Pirtle and Daniel 
Sherwood disappear from the Minutes. Unable to 
perform the duties of traveling preachers, because 
of feeble health, they retire from the work. 

Daniel S. Capell, Thomas H. Gibbons, George W. 
Fagg, Thomas C. Cropper, Joseph G. Ward, and 
John Sandusky enter the local ranks, but at a later 
period are found in the Conference again. 

The names of Richard Corwine, Milton Jamieson, 
and Edward Stevenson, who had been on the super- 
annuated list, appear in the effective ranks, while 
Samuel Harrison is found among the supernumera- 
ries. 

Hooper Evans is the only preacher whose health 
failed during the Conference -year. He becomes 
superannuated. 

In the Methodist Church the preacher surrenders 
the privilege of selecting his own field of labor, 



126 Western Cavaliers. 

while at the same time the Church yields its right 
to call a pastor, each vesting the authority in the 
Bishop. Nothing can be more interesting or excit- 
ing than the closing scene of an Annual Conference, 
when the appointments are announced, fixing the 
home of each member for a year. Several congrega- 
tions may desire the services of the same preacher, 
and several preachers may wish to be appointed to 
the same charge. It is inevitable that some of them 
must be disappointed, and not unfrequently the ex- 
pectations of none of them are realized. A preacher 
has traveled on a District or circuit, or filled a sta- 
tion, for a single year, and to his mind there is no 
reason why he should not be returned to the same 
field; or the Church which has had his services may 
deem his reappointment important to the advance- 
ment and success of the cause of God. An inter- 
change of opinion, however, among those in whom 
is vested the authority to make the appointments 
may develop reasons why a change should be made, 
which must surely be obvious to all. 

The appointing of a single preacher, or the sup- 
plying of a solitary pulpit, would be an easy task; 
but the responsibility, as well as the difficulty, in- 
creases a hundred fold when a hundred men, em- 
bracing every variety of talent, are to be provided 
for, and a hundred Churches to be supplied. 

It is not uncommon for a preacher to entertain 
the opinion that he should be appointed to a certain 
place, or for a Church to believe that it is entitled 
to a certain preacher. Their views would be well 
founded if no counter-claims were presented. It is 



Western Cavaliers. 127 

not surprising, then, that both preachers and people 
are sometimes disappointed.* 

*A preacher in the Louisville Conference was at one time 

appointed to District. His first quarterly-meeting in the 

District was to be held in the most prominent charge in his 
work. On arriving at the place a leading member of the 
Church called to see him, and informed him that his appoint- 
ment was both unexpected and unsatisfactory to the people; 
that they desired their pastor for the previous year to be 
their Presiding Elder; and that even if he had not been their 
first choice, they preferred some other preacher to himself. 
The Presiding Elder made no reply at the time, but felt con- 
siderably embarrassed. He preached on Saturday, both morn- 
ing and evening. On Sunday, after preaching at eleven o'clock 
to a crowded audience, he availed himself of the opportunity 
to refer to what had been said to him. He remarked that he 
was not surprised that the Church at that place desired the 
appointment of their former pastor to the District; that he 
would be very much astonished if any congregation, after 
having been favored with his ministry, should not desire to 
retain him; nor was he surprised that he was not their second 
choice. " But," said he, "there are two sides to this question. 
I was stationed last year among a Christian and intelligent 
people, where I seemed to be useful, to whom I was greatly and 
sincerely attached, and by whom I was beloved. I wished to 
serve them another year, and they unanimously requested my 
reappointment; but I was taken from them, and your pastor 
was sent to fill my place. They are greatly dissatisfied, and 
I have just spent several days with them, trying to reconcile 
them. Besides, if I had expected to be removed, I would not 
have chosen your District. I think I deserve a better place 
and a more appreciative people. But I am your Presiding 
Elder, and you are a portion of my District, and I propose 
that we bury the tomahawk to-day, and for one year try and 
be a mutual blessing to each other." At the fourth quarterly- 
meeting in this charge he announced, in the Quarterly Con- 
ference, his purpose to decline a reappointment to the District, 



128 



Western Cavaliers. 



In the appointments for this year we find William 
Adams on the Lexington District, in the place of 
William Gunm who had traveled it the year before. 
The Augusta District is still supplied with Richard 
Tydings. On the Harrodsburg District. John James 
succeeds William Adams. Benjamin T. Crouch. 
Isaac Collard, and George W. Taylor are returned 
to the same Districts they traveled the previous year. 
In the Lexington District, Hubbard H. Kavanaugh 
was returned to Lexington. In the Augusta Dis- 
trict. John W. Riggin was reappointed to the Flem- 
ing Circuit. We find Jonathan Stamper again at 
Danville and Harrodsburg. in the Harrodsburg Dis- 
trict. George W. Brush, in the Louisville District, 
was again stationed in Shelbyville, and William 
Holman in Louisville. In the Hopkinsville District. 
Xewton G. Berryman was returned to Bowling 
Green, and Buford Henry to the Green River Cir- 
cuit: in the Greensburg District, Jesse Sutton to 
Glasgow, and John Denham to the Lebanon Circuit. 

To record the growth and advancement of Meth- 
odism in the State of Kentucky is always a pleasant 
task. Identified, as we have been, for the past 
forty-two years with the Methodist Church, and for 
thirty-eight years with the fortunes of the Methodist 
ministry, we would be untrue to every generous and 
noble impulse if. in the midst of duties in other 
sections of the Church, our thoughts did not revert 
with feelings of pleasure to the home of our child- 

at which they demurred, and appointed a committee to attend 
the Conference and protest against any change. He remained 
in this District four years. 



Western Cavaliers. 



129 



hood and the scenes of our first religious impres- 
sions and early ministry. To follow in the path of 
those who preceded us. and to watch the struggling 
cause to which so many valiant lives were pledged, 
and in which so many were sacrificed, and to see it 
as from year to year it became more commanding 
and powerful, has ever been a fondly- cherished 
pleasure. 

The year which followed the Conference of 1834, 
although "times of refreshing from the presence of 
the Lord" were realized in several sections of the 
Conference, was not distinguished by any extraor- 
dinary outpourings of the Holy Spirit, Valuable 
accessions to the Church cheered the hearts of the 
disciples of Christ in some portions of the work; 
but, with these exceptions, the Church was quiet and 
calm. 

In the Burlington Circuit, in the Lexington Dis- 
trict — to which John Carr Harrison and Henry X. 
Vandyke were appointed — there was some increase 
in the membership, but in every other charge in 
that District the membership decreased. It is true 
that in the city of Frankfort, under the ministry of 
Thomas W. Chandler, there was a revival of re- 
ligion, in which a few persons were converted and 
added to the Church; but even in this station there 
was a falling off in both the white and colored 
membership. In the Falmouth Circuit, also, one 
hundred and fifty-seven persons were added to the 
Church; yet the Minutes report fifty white and 
twenty-five colored less than the previous year. In 
the entire District there was a decrease of four hun- 
6* 



130 



Western Cavaliers. 



clred and ninety-two in the white membership, and 
two hundred and eight in the colored. 

If we look over the Augusta District we find but 
little more to cheer us than in the Lexington. In 
the Hinckstone, the Little Sandy, and the Big Sandy 
Circuits the revivals were extensive, and many were 
brought to Christ. In the Hinckstone Circuit, 
through the instrumentality of the quaint Josiah 
TThitaker and the young and zealous Robinson E. 
Sidebottom, many were converted. Lorenzo D. 
Parker — distinguished for his success in "winning 
souls to Christ 7 ' — and Peter Taylor, plain and pure- 
hearted, were eminently useful on the Little Sandy, 
and under their ministry two hundred persons be- 
came members of the Church; while, on the Big 
Sandy Circuit, John Xevius and Daniel S. Barksdale 
were equally successful. In the Germantown Cir- 
cuit, whose preachers were Absalom Woolliseroft 
and George TT. Simcoe, one hundred and fifty per- 
sons joined the Church, and yet a decrease in the 
membership was reported. In this District there 
were three hundred and eighteen white members 
less than the year before, while in the colored mem- 
bership there was an increase of ninety-four. 

The Harrodsburg District also reported a decrease 
of one hundred and eighty-seven in the white mem- 
bership, and of one hundred and nine in the colored. 
The Mount Sterling Station and Mount Vernon 
Circuit — the former under the pastoral charge of 
Edward Stevenson, a preacher of a high order of 
talent and uncompromising zeal, and the latter 
under the leadership of Elijah Sutton and Reuben W. 



Western Cavaliers. 



131 



Landrum, indefatigable young men — were greatly 
blessed during the year. Revivals crowned the la- 
bors of these faithful men, and an increase was re- 
ported in both of these charges. 

In the Cumberland Mission — which embraced a 
vast extent of territory, covering the head-waters of 
the Cumberland and Kentucky Rivers, amid the 
mountains of South-eastern Kentucky — between 
fifty and sixty persons had been brought into the 
Church. Richard Holding, a pure and simple- 
hearted preacher of the gospel, and Napoleon B. 
Lewis — a young man of extraordinary pulpit abil- 
ity, and with a zeal that knew no bounds save his 
wasting strength — had charge of this work. Thirty- 
three preaching-places had been established in this 
rugged field, at each of which these young evan- 
gelists preached every four weeks. Their ministry 
was greatly blessed, although a small decrease at 
the close of the year appears in the Minutes. In 
the other charges in the District the decrease was 
greater. 

It is pleasant to turn from such barren scenes as 
those through which we have just passed to the con- 
templation of a more productive field — the Louis- 
ville District. Although the increase in this District 
was small, being only sixty in the white and thirty 
in the colored membership, yet it is gratifying to 
know that amid the religious dearth so prevalent in 
Kentucky during this year the Louisville District 
maintained the ground previously occupied. In the 
city of Louisville there was a falling off in the 
membership, and also in the Newcastle Circuit — 



132 



Western Cavaliers. 



both of these charges being under the pastoral care 
of men who were distinguished for the success that 
usually crowned their labors. The other appoint- 
ments in the District not only maintained their 
former strength, but made some progress. 

The Shelby Circuit, with William G-unn and 
James D. Holding — the former the sweet singer, 
and the latter the weeping prophet, of the Confer- 
ence — had a small increase in the white membership, 
but reported a falling ofl* in the colored. Shelby- 
ville — still under the leadership of George W. Brush 
— continued to advance in numbers and in influence. 
The Taylorsville Circuit, with John Christian Har- 
rison* as the preacher, enjoyed prosperity, while 
Francis Landrum and Robert Y. McReynolds were 
eminently useful on the Jefferson. The Breckin- 
ridge Circuit was favored with the ministry of 
Thomas P. Farmer and John Beatty — the former 
large and robust, the latter small and lean, but both 
devoted to their work, and their ministry acknowl- 
edged in a large ingathering into the fold of Christ. 
The Yellow Banks Circuit, under the ministry of 
the modest Robert F. Turner, was greatly blessed; 
while the Hartford Circuit, with Thomas S. Davis 
as the preacher, enjoyed many gracious seasons. 

For two years the Hopkinsville District declined 

* John C. Harrison was appointed to the Yellow Banks Cir- 
cuit, and Kobert F. Turner to the Taylorsville. The Rev. 
Samuel Harrison, the father of John C. Harrison, died soon 
after Conference, which rendered it necessary that he should 
travel near the residence of his mother; hence the change 
between him and Mr. Turner. 



Western Cavaliers. 



133 



in membership. Two hundred and ninety -two 
white and thirty-three colored members less than at 
the previous Conference are reported in the Minutes 
for this year, the Hopkinsville Station and the 
Greenville Circuit being the only charges where an 
increase is reported. In the Greenville Circuit, 
James H. Brooking and Henry Edmundson accom- 
plished great good. Revivals in several Societies 
blessed their ministry, and at the close of the year 
they reported a net increase of eighty-nine white 
and three colored members. In the Hopkinsville 
Station, under the ministry of William S. Evans, 
the popular and zealous pastor, the white member- 
ship w T as nearly doubled. In the remaining charges 
a decrease was reported, with the exception of 
Bowling Green, where no change appears in the 
Minutes. 

In the Greensburg District we are confronted 
with losses in every charge except the Salt River 
Circuit — where the veteran Denham and the beard- 
less Blades traveled and preached — and the Bards- 
town Station, under the pastoral care of the eloquent 
Silas Lee, w r here one white member less and one 
colored more than for the previous year are re- 
ported. The total loss in this District was four 
hundred and twenty-seven w 7 hite and forty-five col- 
ored members. 

In Jackson's Purchase we find an increase re- 
ported in the Hickman Circuit, to which Thomas 
Lloyd and H. B. McCord had been sent; while in 
the Wadesboro Circuit a small decrease is reported. 

The entire loss in Kentucky for this year was 



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sixteen hundred and sixty-six white and two hundred 
and fifty-nine colored members. 

The ministry of George W. D. Harris in Kentucky 
closes with the present year. We regret to part 
with him. We first met him in the autumn of 1831, 
in charge of the Paris District, which included the 
Wadesboro and Hickman Circuits. During the four 
years in which he presided over this District his 
ministry in Kentucky was greatly blessed. Faithful 
in every department of his work, he exerted an in- 
fluence for good which was felt from the center to 
the circumference of the vast field he occupied. As 
a preacher he ranked with the first pulpit men in 
the West, and was instrumental in bringing hun- 
dreds into the fold of Christ. His sermons, always 
replete with instruction, were often attended with 
remarkable power, and under his masterly argu- 
ments and earnest appeals many a sinner was led to 
abandon a life of vice, and to fly for refuge to the 
hope set before him in the gospel. 

In the summer of 1832 he was present at the 
camp-meeting held at Mobley's Camp-ground, in 
Graves county. Kentucky, and preached on Sunday, 
at eleven o'clock. The crowd was immense, eagerly 
catching the words of life as they fell from the lips 
of the preacher. A feeling of awe pervaded the 
assembly as he portrayed the life and final doom of 
the sinner. Pausing in the midst of the sermon, he 
exclaimed : " I will give the process by which a Deist 
may be converted.'"' In the audience was Major 
Collins, a refined and polished gentleman, who had 
rejected the claims of Christianity and embraced 



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Deism. Attracted by the statement of Mr. Harris, 
his attention became riveted on the speaker. He 
watched him as he progressed in the argument until 
he saw himself a sinner before God, standing on the 
threshold of ruin, a yawning gulf, without bank or 
bottom, beneath him, and above a frowning Judge. 
Despair, with raven wings, hovered over him, and, 
rising from his seat, he pressed his way to the altar, 
crying aloud, " Lost, lost, lost ! " No, not lost. Just 
then a ray of golden light pierced the gloom, bring- 
ing hope to the despairing soul. The bow of mercy 
spanned the heavens, and threw its mellow radiance 
over a sorrowing heart. Grod was gracious, and in a 
few moments peace and joy filled the soul of the 
repentant sinner. The Major joined the Church 
that day, and was baptized by Mr. Harris.* 

It would be a pleasant task to follow this faithful 
man through the long period of his ministry, and to 
record the success that crowned his labors for nearly 
half a century; but another will perform this duty. 
He died in Dyersburg, Tennessee, December 9, 1872. f 

*At the session of the Memphis Conference in 1867, Dr. 
Harris related the above incident to the author. Major Collins 
was then living, a pious member of the Church. 

f Bishop McTyeire, in the Nashville Christian Advocate, of 
December 28b 1872, says: 

" G-. W. D. Harris was no common man. Of strong will, clear 
perceptions, and deep convictions, of high and consecrated 
purpose, consistent and blameless in life, and capable of zeal 
in a good cause, he combined all the qualities that make a 
leader among men; and such he was. The natural sternness 
of his elements was relieved by the tenderness of love and a 
vein of chastened humor. Even down to old age he was a 



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most agreeable companion to persons of every class — full of 
striking sentiment, incisive remark, and of pertinent, in- 
structive anecdote and interesting reminiscences. It is sig- 
nificant of his character that he was titled and habitually- 
spoken of by his younger brethren not as ' Doctor Harris,' but 
as 'Uncle George.' The doctrines and morals of Christianity 
were firmly grasped and perspicuously enunciated by him. 
Often a great unction rested upon his preaching and his 
prayers. Our ecclesiastical polity he understood and loved, 
and was a model Presiding Elder, which high office he adorned 
and magnified for more than half of his ministerial years. He 
might have been, by the strength of his mind, the force of his 
character, the power of his speech, and the opportunities of 
his times — yes, he might have been rich and great in the 
world's esteem. But what were these to him? He kept to 
the lot God assigned him : he fulfilled his life-work as a Meth- 
odist preacher, without turning aside to the right hand or the 
left. How many preachers has he recruited into the Master's 
service? how many members has he added to the Church? 
how many souls have been quickened and converted under 
his ministry ? The annals of time may not yet answer these 
questions. A pioneer in these broad fields, he endured the 
burden and heat of the day. We have entered into his labors, 
and he into his rest. 

"When the Memphis Conference was constituted, in No- 
vember, 1840, G. W. D. Harris naturally found his place at the 
head of it, and his brethren have had the wisdom and the 
grace to keep him there. Unavoidably and fortunately he 
has impressed himself upon that large and valuable body of 
ministers and members. His decision, his practical wisdom, 
his love of the Church's welfare, and jealousy for its honor, 
commanded for his opinions marked deference. ' Unto him 
men gave ear, and waited, and kept silence at his counsel.' 
Grand old man! When shall we see his like again? We 
thank God for having given him to the Church, and permitted 
him to continue with us so long. Many, very many, of his sons 
in the gospel and spiritual children have gone before him to 
paradise; others, faint, yet pursuing, are following on. 



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The itinerant ranks were thinned this year by 
the death of several preachers. Benjamin Ogden, 
Francis Landrum, Samuel Harrison, William Adams, 
Minor M. Cosby, and William Outten passed from 
labor to reward. 

The names of Ogden, Landrum, Harrison, and 
Adams had for many years been familiar not only to 
the Methodists in Kentucky, but to other Christian 
denominations. Shoulder to shoulder they had 
toiled and labored, sacrificed and suffered, and to- 
gether had passed away and entered upon eternal 
life* 

Of the time and place of the birth of Minor M. 
Cosby we have no record. He was about twenty- 
one years of age when he embraced religion, and 
two years later was admitted on trial into the Ken- 
tucky Conference. His first appointment was to 
the Greenville Circuit, as the colleague of Thomas 
G-. Reece. In 1832 he traveled the Danville Circuit 



"After he grew to manhood he knew no second childhood. 
The outward senses were dulled and decayed toward the last, 
but his mental faculties were firm and his faith clear. The 
long shadows of life's closing day fell upon him still at work. 
He attends his forty-eighth Annual Conference, and answers 
to his name at roll-call; his farewell sermon is preached, his 
'character passes,' and he goes home to die. This, indeed, is 
the itinerant's much-coveted euthanasia. As the aged servant 
utters Nunc dimittis, and retires from the field, we join all his 
brethren in saying, ' Servant of God, well done ! ' You leave 
the world better for having lived in it." 

* For sketches of Benjamin Ogden, Francis Landrum, Samuel 
Harrison, and William Adams, see "History of Methodism in 
Kentucky." 



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with Milton Jamieson, and in 1833. as the colleague 
of John James, he performs the duties of an itiner- 
ant on the Winchester Circuit. At the Conference 
of 1834 he was appointed to the Henderson Circuit, 
where he closed his labors with his life. 

Ko young man in the Conference promised greater 
usefulness to the Church than did Minor M. Cosby. 
Although his talents were not of the highest order, 
yet his pulpit abilities were far above mediocrity, 
while his deportment out of the pulpit exerted no 
ordinary influence for good. During the four years 
of his itinerant service he was eminently useful and 
greatly beloved in the several fields in which he la- 
bored. He died of congestive fever, on the 5th of 
September, 1835, five days preceding the openiug 
of the Conference. His last sufferings were severe, 
but were borne with firmness and resignation. In 
his dying moments he bore testimony to the saving 
power of the religion he had preached so success- 
fully 

William Outten was a native of Fayette county, 
Kentucky, and was brought up in the city of Lex- 
ington, where he joined the Church when quite 
young, and was converted to God. From the time 
he became a member of the Church his piety was 
uniform and consistent. Active in all the enter- 
prises of the Church, he devoted himself to its in- 
terests with laudable zeal. Feeling that God had 
called him to preach the gospel, he applied himself 
to study with true diligence, and gave promise of 
great usefulness in the Church. At the Conference 
of 1833 he offered himself for the itinerant work, 



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and was accepted, and appointed to the Burksville 
Circuit. At the Conference of 1834 he was con- 
tinued on trial, and appointed to the Green River 
Circuit, with Bluford Henry. He, however, had 
scarcely entered upon his work when a malignant 
fever fastened upon his system, and bore him to the 
grave. During his illness he suffered acutely, but 
not a murmur fell from his lips. He died in great 
triumph, December 24, 1834, at twelve o'clock m., at 
the house of Mr. Porter, a member of the Church. 



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CHAPTER IV. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1835 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1836. 

Sow in the morn thy seed, 

At eve hold not thy hand ; 
To doubt and fear give thou no heed — 

Broad-cast it o'er the land. 
Beside all waters sow, 

The highway furrows stock, 
Drop it where thorns and thistles grow, 

Scatter it on the rock. 

THE Kentucky Conference for 1835 met in Shel- 
byville, on the 16th of September. Here, for 
the first time, we saw Bishop Andrew. It was his 
first visit to Kentucky. 

James Osgood Andrew was born in Wilkes county, 
Georgia, May 3, 1794. His father, the Kev. John 
Andrew, was for three years a traveling preacher, 
but in 1792 — two years previous to the birth of his 
son — retired to the local ranks, in which sphere he 
was distinguished for his zeal and usefulness. 

Not only favored with a Christian father, but also 
with a mother remarkable for her superior intellect 
and fervent piety, young Andrew grew up in the 
bosom of the Church, developing traits of character 



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which would render him useful in the time to come. 
When only a child he was often taken by his mother 
to her place of private prayer, where, with her soft 
hand upon his head, she would commend him to 
God, and pray that he might become a Methodist 
preacher. When only thirteen years of age he was 
admitted to the communion of the Church, and at 
eighteen was licensed to preach. 

Denied the advantages of a classical education, 
he was led by his fondness for study to his father's 
library, where he improved his time in reading the 
books thus placed in his way. 

A congregation of colored people was the first to 
hear him proclaim the words of eternal truth; and 
to the negroes of Georgia his ministry was signally 
blessed through the long years of his life. His first 
appearance in the pulpit, in the presence of his 
neighbors and friends, elicited from a prominent 
member of the Church the remark, " Well, Jeemes, 
I voted the other day for you to be a preacher; but 
if I had heard that sermon first, I never would have 
done it." His recommendation to the Annual Con- 
ference was presented by his Presiding Elder — Dr. 
Lovick Pierce — at the session of the South Carolina 
Conference which met in Charleston, December 12, 
1812, at which time he became an itinerant preacher. 

The first field of ministerial labor to which Mr. 
Andrew was assigned was the Saltketcher Circuit, as 
the junior preacher. The second year of his minis- 
try was spent in charge of the Bladen Circuit. At 
the Conference of 1814 he was sent to the Warren 
Circuit, and the following year he was stationed in 



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Charleston. We next find hini lifting the standard 
of the cross in Wilmington, North Carolina, where 
he remained for two years. From Wilmington we 
follow him to Augusta, Georgia, and thence to Sa- 
vannah, serving two years in each city. 

No man in so short a period had risen more rap- 
idly to eminence in the Church than this faithful 
minister of Jesus Christ. The plainness and sim- 
plicity with which he delivered his message, the zeal 
which distinguished his pulpit efforts, the power 
that attended his sermons, his success in winning 
souls to Christ, together with his abundant labors 
and his uncompromising devotion to the work to 
which he had been divinely called, betokened the 
high position he was destined to occupy in the 
Church of Christ. 

In 1824 he became the leader on the Edisto Dis- 
trict, and in 1825 and 1826 on the Charleston. He 
returned to the city of Charleston in 1827, where, 
twelve years before, when a young man, he had pro- 
claimed the tidings of salvation. For two years he 
remained in Charleston, whence he was appointed 
to Athens and Greensboro, in the State of Georgia, 
and in 1830 to Greensboro and Madison. In 1831 
he was again stationed in Augusta — the Georgia 
Conference having been organized that year — and 
in January of the following year was returned to 
the same city. 

At this period no minister in the State of Georgia 
occupied so prominent a place in the public thought 
as James 0. Andrew. Pure as the crystal drops as 
they fall from the clouds, with an intellect broad 



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and massive, with a zeal commensurate with the 
wants and woes of mankind, and with a heart 
warmed by the fires of eternal love, he delivered, in 
burning" words, the mighty truths of the gospel to 
saint and to sinner. From the time he became an 
itinerant until his elevation to the Episcopacy, in 
1832, he had labored with fidelity and success, win- 
ning hundreds of souls to Christ. 

He entered upon the duties of a Bishop in the 
full vigor of manhood, bringing to the office not 
only commanding talents, but the fervor and zeal 
which had distinguished his ministry in the Caroli- 
nas and in Georgia. 

He reached Shelbyville several days previous to 
the opening of the session. On Sabbath, at eleven 
o'clock a.m., he preached in the Methodist Church. 
His fame had preceded him, and an immense au- 
dience, for a full hour, hung in breathless silence on 
his lips. His text, like the sermon, was a plain one : 
" Now when John had heard in the prison the works 
of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, and said unto 
him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look 
for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, 
Go and shew John again those things which ye do 
hear and see: the blind receive their sight, and the 
lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf 
hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the 
gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who- 
soever shall not be offended in me." * 

The sermon was one of great simplicity and power. 
John the Baptist was confined in a lonely prison, 
*Matt. xi. 2-6. 



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from which he would soon be led to execution. 
The precursor of the Messiah, to him it was a mat- 
ter of surprise that His arm had not interposed in 
his behalf, and broken the fetters that bound him. 
Tempted to call in question the claims of Christ to 
the Messiahship, vet unwilling to yield to the siren 
roice of the tempter, he sends two of his disciples to 
the Master, to ask him whether he was the Messiah 
or not. How simple the reply ! In the crowd which 
had assembled before him every malady was repre- 
sented. There stood the man blind from his birth, 
who had heard of the fame of the ^azarene, and 
had come to ask for sight; there, too, the lame 
man, unable to support his tottering frame, was 
pleading for relief; the leper, whose life was blighted 
by the most loathsome of all the maladies that ever 
cursed the human family, in piteous tones was beg- 
ging for compassion; the deaf man, too, who in 
childhood had never heard the sound of the lullaby 
from a mothers lips, and upon whose ears musical 
strains had never fallen, was seeking to be cured; 
close by where he stood the place of graves spread 
out before the view of the assembled multitude; 
while the poor and the outcast, for whose souls no 
man seemed to care, with countenances on which de- 
spair had been written, were catching here and there 
a word of hope. He speaks — and the scales fall from 
the eyes of the blind, and earth, with all its scenes 
of grandeur and beauty, and sky, with all its loveli- 
ness and brightness, greet the astonished vision; the 
lame man throws away his crutches, and, forgetful 
of all the sorrows of the past, leaps for joy; the 



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leper, scorned and hated, and driven into solitude, 
returns to the bosom of society, blessing and being 
blessed; the deaf, no longer insensible to the voice 
of melody and of song, are enraptured with strains 
far surpassing the grandest conceptions of the mind; 
but, look! mausoleums are crumbling, graves are 
opening, and the dead are starting from their beds 
of dust, and mingling with the living throng; and 
the poor, whose homes have been in the highways 
and hedges, and to whose ears no sweet invitation to 
be saved had ever come, are included in the plan of 
mercy, and have the gospel preached to them. G-o, 
and tell your master what you have heard and seen, 
and then, if he can, let him doubt. 

We have given scarcely an outline of the intro- 
duction to this remarkable sermon. During its de- 
livery the audience was often moved to tears. 

William Phillips was appointed Secretary of the 
Conference, in the place of William Adams, who 
had for many years previous to his death occupied 
that position. 

The usual committees were appointed, after which 
Henry B. Bascom offered a resolution expressive of 
the deep sorrow of the Conference over the loss sus- 
tained by the inroads of death during the year which 
had just closed, and suggesting the appointment of 
some one to preach a sermon commemorative of 
those w r ho had died. 

During no previous year had the Church sustained 
so heavy a loss by the death of its ministers. The 
greater number of the deceased were cavaliers whose 
names were familiar to the Church, because of the 
7 



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long service they had rendered, and who had led the 
victorious charge in many a stirring conflict. They 
had fought their last battle, and entered upon "the 
rest that remaineth to the people of God." 

In an appropriate resolution, Henry B. Bascom 
was "requested" to preach a sermon in memory of 
the departed ministers. 

Among the items of business transacted by the 
Conference during this session the resolution pro- 
posing that "a committee of five be appointed to 
prepare an address to the members and friends of 
the Methodist Church on the subject of patronizing 
the Western Christian Advocate, for the purpose of 
extending its circulation within the bounds of the 
Kentucky Conference," deserves a prominent place. 

The Western Christian Advocate, established in the 
city of Cincinnati, was intended to meet a want 
which was deeply felt in the West. No Conference, 
not even the Ohio, was more deeply interested in its 
success than the Kentucky. The information it 
contained from week to week was important to the 
Church, not only making known its progress and 
growth, but awakening an interest in behalf of all 
its enterprises. Up to this period the circulation 
of the paper in Kentucky was not equal either to 
the wants of the Church or the expectations of its 
friends. It is true that in some of the charges the 
subscription -list was all that could be reasonably 
expected, and in these charges the Church pros- 
pered and all its undertakings were successful; in 
others, however, it scarcely found its way to a soli- 
tary home, and a corresponding indifference was 



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shown in reference to every interest of the Church. 
While many of the preachers felt that the Christian 
Advocate was a potent auxiliary in the accomplish- 
ment of good, and presented its claims to the patron- 
age of their people, there were others who gave no 
thought to the subject, and almost reluctantly re- 
ceived the names of subscribers when offered to 
them. To support a Church -paper then, as now, 
was no easy task; it required the cooperation of all 
the patronizing Conferences to insure its success. 
Something more than mere Conference resolutions, 
however, was necessary to consummate this object, 
and the design of the action of the body was not 
only to awaken an interest in the minds of those 
preachers who had hitherto made no effort to place 
the Advocate in the families they visited, but to call 
the attention of the Church to the benefit to be de- 
rived from such a visitor to every Christian family.* 

Resolutions recommending the Methodist Magazine 
and Quarterly Review were also adopted. 

The subject of Temperance came before the Con- 
ference at this session, as it had done for several 
years preceding. The General Conference, which 
was to meet the following May, was memorialized 
"to restore Mr. Wesley's rule on the subject of ar- 
dent spirits."f It is certainly gratifying to know 

preacher is true either to himself or the people he 
serves if he allows a family in his charge to be without their 
Church-paper, and no family will feel the same interest in the 
Church, deprived of this blessing, as if they enjoyed it. 

f The rule is as follows: "Drunkenness; buying and selling 
spirituous liquors, or drinking them, unless in cases of ox- 
treme necessity." 



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that the resolution embodying this petition to the 
General Conference received the unanimous vote of 
the body, with a single exception. The Journal of 
the Conference declines to furnish the name of the 
preacher who voted in the negative. 

The Friday before the ensuing Christmas was set 
apart " as a day of fasting and prayer for the peace 
and prosperity of Zion, and that the great Head of 
the Church would send forth more laborers into his 
vineyard/' 

Resolutions were adopted, urging more active 
efforts in behalf of education, and expressing oppo- 
sition to the policy of Abolitionists on the subject 
of slavery. 

The questions of Abolition and Colonization had 
been referred to a large and able committee, con- 
sisting of Henry B. Bascom, Jonathan Stamper, 
John Littlejohn, Joseph S. Tomlinson, Hubbard 
H. Eavanaugh, Richard Corwine, John Tevis, and 
John Beatty. They submitted the following report, 
which was unanimously adopted by the Conference: 

"1. Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, 
That we strictly adhere to the principles of our 
Church on the subject of slavery, and that it is our 
purpose to persevere in the course hitherto pursued, 
without any alliance whatever with men or measures 
whose object may be an interference with the ques- 
tion of slavery, uncalled for by the common good, 
and productive of mischievous rather than beneficial 
results. 

"2. Resolved, That, in the judgment of this Con- 
ference, the interference of Abolitionists and anti- 



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slavery associations, in tlie North and elsewhere, by 
which the peace and quiet of a large portion of the 
nation are disturbed, and their common interest, 
laws, and safety placed in jeopardy, should be looked 
upon as an unwarrantable assumption of claim and 
an abuse of the rights of citizenship. 

" 3. Resolved, That, in the opinion of this Con- 
ference, whenever such interference with the rights 
of American citizens is attempted by foreign emis- 
saries, whether as lecturers, ecclesiastics, or other- 
wise, all lawful means should be promptly resorted 
to, to arrest at once the mischievous tendency of 
their seditious intermeddling and officious insolence. 

" 4. Resolved, That, without presuming to decide, 
we would respectfully suggest that it is a dangerous 
maxim to be adopted by American citizens in the 
present crisis, that we may appreciate as pure and 
correct the motives of men whose measures and 
movements tend directly to subvert the Constitution 
and dissolve the Government. 

"5. Resolved, That it is not considered by this 
body allowable for. any minister or member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, within the limits of 
this Conference, or, as we conceive, elsewhere, to 
resort to any extra-judicial means whatever for the 
purpose of interfering with the question of slavery. 

"6. Resolved, That we continue to repose entire 
confidence in the rectitude, policy, and operations 
of the American Colonization Society, and that we 
commend it to all who are likely to regard our 
opinions as any way worthy their approval and 
patronage." 



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The Kentucky Conference plainly foresaw the re- 
sults of the policy of Abolitionists upon the Church 
as well as the State, and deemed it proper to place 
itself right before the people of Kentucky and be- 
fore the nation. 

On Monday, the fifth day of the session, Henry B. 
Bascom, Benjamin T. Crouch, Edward Stevenson, 
Jonathan Stamper, Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, and 
GTeorge W. Taylor were elected delegates to the 
General Conference, and John Christian Harrison 
and Josiah Whitaker were elected reserve delegates. 

Under the administration of Bishop Andrew the 
business was rapidly dispatched, and from the com- 
mencement to the close of the Conference the most 
perfect harmony prevailed. 

The preaching during the session was of a very 
high order. It was the first Conference on which 
we had ever looked, and we listened to every sermon 
that w^as preached in the Methodist Church. We 
were too young, perhaps, to be able to form an ac- 
curate judgment in reference to the pulpit ability 
of the distinguished preachers who were present, 
yet accustomed, as the citizens of Shelbyville were, 
to listening to the ablest ministers of all denomina- 
tions, it was the commonly expressed opinion that 
on no former occasion had that community been so 
greatly favored in this regard. Although forty 
years have intervened since that meeting, we re- 
member with distinctness several of the sermons 
which were preached, and the impressions they 
made on our mind. 

The sermon delivered by Thomas ~N. Ralston — 



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then a young man — from the text " Return unto thy 
rest, my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully 
with thee," >:< was not only a masterpiece of compo- 
sition, but produced a wonderful effect. We have 
since often listened, with thrilling interest, to the 
same distinguished divine, but on no occasion have 
we heard him excel the sermon he preached at that 
time. The soul — its immortality and its capacity 
for suffering or for bliss — a wanderer from God, its 
only source of rest — the exhortation to return, and 
the rich provision made through the atonement of 
Jesus Christ for its happiness here and hereafter — 
were the themes on which the preacher dwelt. In 
a whisper soft as the evening zephyr he portrayed 
the sufferings of Christ for the sins of mankind, 
and the rich inheritance provided for the world by 
the death of the Son of God. He dipped his pencil 
in living light to paint the agonies that Jesus bore, 
and to unfold the glittering splendors of the heav- 
enly state in which the soul should bask forever and 
ever. Then, rising to the loftiest heights of oratory, 
he pointed to the realms of night — unending night 
— where the soul, invested with immortality, should 
roam amid darkness and gloom, through eternal 
ages — lost, lost, forever lost ! 

Tuesday morning, September 22d, at half-past ten 
o'clock, was fixed as the time for the service in 
memory of deceased ministers of the Conference — 
Mr. Bascom to preach the sermon, according to ap- 
pointment. The veteran Ogden, the quaint and 
devoted Harrison, the mild and gentle Adams, the 
* Psalm cxvi. 7. 



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zealous Landrum, the youthful Cosby and Outten, 
had fought their last battle, and received their dis- 
charge. The interest of the occasion, as well as 
the fame of the preacher, attracted to the house of 
worship an immense assembly. It was a solemn 
time. Mr. B. read his text: " death, where is thy 
sting? grave, where is thy victory? The sting of 
death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 
But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory 
through our Lord Jesus Christ."* 

Sin had introduced death into the world, and 
death was the enemy of mankind. He passes over 
the world, and through the generations destroys the 
human race; he brings desolation and sorrow to 
every hearth and to every heart; none can escape 
his grasp. The home of poverty and the abode of 
wealth are alike invaded, and, without distinction, 
all fall a prey to his prowess and his power. The 
world is a vast grave-yard, and all are hurrying to 
the goal. Is there no hope for the human family? 
Is there no relief from the terrible doom from 
whose threatenings all would flee? Where shall 
man look for help? The heavens above are dark; 
the cloud of Divine wrath rolls up heavy from the 
horizon, until it covers our spiritual sky with sack- 
cloth and gloom; it hangs about the world silent, 
dark, and terrible. The sleeping thunderbolt is 
ready at every moment to leap from its stormy 
home, and explode on the very hearthstone of our 
planet. Every human system is impotent to avert 
the awful catastrophe. It was then that the Son of 



* 1 Cor. xv. 55-57. 



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153 



God, with an arm omnipotent, disarmed the cloud 
of its wrath, until its darkness dissolved in purple 
and gold, and the rainbow came out and stood, like 
an angel of peace, on its glittering folds. " It is 
finished!" falls from the dying lips of the Man of 
Sorrows, and rolls with inexpressible sweetness to 
the skies; and Death, powerless in his own domin- 
ions — no longer a conqueror — yields to Him who 
broke his massive bars and " brought life and im- 
mortality to light." 

We will not, however, attempt even a synopsis 
of this sermon. 

On Sunday of the Conference, at eleven o'clock, 
Bishop Andrew preached previous to the ordination 
of the deacons. His text was "Preach the word; 
be instant in season, out of season." * No man was 
better qualified to preach at an hour like this than 
Bishop Andrew. Soundly converted, and divinely 
called to the work of the Christian ministry, and 
by experience familiar with every variety of ap- 
pointment, and devoted to the cause in which he 
was spending his noble life, he was well prepared 
to utter words of cheer to younger men who had 
entered upon this service. With him a divine call 
to the work of the Christian ministry was essen- 
tial. " No man taketh this honor to himself, but he 
that is called of God." " The harvest truly is plen- 
teous, but the laborers are few; pray ye therefore 
the Lord of the harvest that he will send forth la- 
borers into his harvest." No man, however brilliant 
his talents — however anxious he may be to build up 
*2 Tim. iv. 2. 

7* 



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Western Cavaliers. 



the Church, or to accomplish good — has the right to 
become a preacher unless God calls him to the work. 
In God, and in him alone, is vested the authority to 
call men into this high and holy office; nor has the 
man whom he chooses any right to refuse. No plea 
for declining to enter upon the work can avail. A 
man may be destitute of commanding abilities, or 
he may not be fluent in speech — outward circum- 
stances may be all unfavorable — yet, if God calls 
him to preach the gospel, the call is imperative. 
He discussed the itinerant system of the Methodist 
Church, and advocated it as the apostolic plan, 
adopted by Jesus Christ himself, and as the only 
plan by which the highways and hedges can be vis- 
ited and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 
By this system, Methodism — younger by far than any 
other leading branch of the Church in America — has 
surpassed and distanced all others in the achieve- 
ment of good. To-day it stands without a rival not 
only in the energy it displays, but in the thousands 
who worship at its altars. Its votaries are every- 
where — in the crowded city and in the home of the 
humble mountaineer — brought into the Church and 
to Christ through the instrumentality of the itin- 
erant system. It is God's plan. Now and then a 
restless spirit may be found, who would blot itiner- 
ancy from the map of Methodism, because he is 
unwilling to participate in its sacrifices. The life 
of a traveling Methodist preacher is not a life of 
ease; it is not the road to pleasure, to fortune, or 
to fame. If influenced by any of these considera- 
tions, abandon at once a work which makes no such 



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155 



promises and offers no such rewards. He urged 
upon the preachers the fact that in entering the 
itinerant ministry they had no right to break the 
rules, or to inveigh against the system; that they 
had entered it voluntarily, and could retire from it 
whenever it might please them to do so. 

We shall never forget his earnest appeal to the 
preachers, not only to go to the fields of labor as- 
signed them, promptly, but to be faithful in their 
work. " Never neglect an appointment/' he said, 
"if possible to meet it. Let neither sunshine nor 
storm, rain nor snow, keep you from meeting your 
appointments; you may be water-bound, but never 
weather-bound." 

It was two years later when we joined the Con- 
ference; but the impressions made on our mind by 
this sermon have never been effaced. The admoni- 
tions of that hour contributed largely to the forma- 
tion of our character as a Methodist preacher, and 
are still among the most fondly-cherished memories 
of our heart. 

It was at this Conference that the first annual 
report of the Kentucky Conference Missionary So- 
ciety was read. The missionary meeting was held 
on Monday afternoon, September 21st. Bishop An- 
drew was invited to preach a sermon on the occa- 
sion. His text was " Say not ye, There are yet four 
months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say 
unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; 
for they are white already to harvest." * 

Three years had elapsed since the first missionary 
* John iv. 35. 



156 



Western Cavaliers. 



money had been reported by the Kentucky Confer- 
ence, and the amounts previously collected were 
chiefly, if not entirely, contributed by the preachers 
themselves. Little, however, had been done in this 
direction. An apathy pervaded the Church, or 
rather but little interest had ever been awakened, 
in reference to missionary enterprise; and both the 
preachers and people needed to be aroused. The 
whole field demanding Christian effort was sur- 
veyed by Bishop Andrew. The world belonged to 
God, having been purchased by the sufferings and 
death of his Son Jesus Christ. They had revolted 
from their rightful Sovereign, and sought for bliss 
in other objects, but had sought in vain. The pagan 
world, becoming disgusted with idol- worship, passed 
in review before the audience — with uplifted hands, 
appealing for help, and with the cry upon their lips, 
"Who will show us any good?" No friendly hand 
had reached out to save them; no ear. had listened 
to their plaintive appeal; their cries, their tears, 
their prayers, had been unheeded; and nation after 
nation had fallen into hell, while Christians, with 
folded arms, satisfied their consciences with the con- 
venient plea, "Charity begins at home." For more 
than an hour he pleaded, as a man pleads for his 
life, the cause of those " who sit in darkness and in 
the valley of the shadow of death." The sermon 
gave a fresh impulse to the preachers; the entire 
assembly was stirred; tears flowed freely down the 
faces of men unused to weep, and resolutions were 
formed never to be broken.* The collection, at 
* The Rev. John Netherton, a Baptist preacher, was occu- 



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157 



the close of this very effective sermon, amounted to 
$1,684.50. 

Seven preachers were admitted on trial — viz.: 
Thomas Demoss, "William jVL Crawford, George S. 
Savage, Thomas R. Malone, John C. C. Thompson, 
William Burns, and Alexander Kessinger. 

Of those who had entered the Conference one 
year before, Ezekiel Mobley, George W. Simcoe, 
and John C. Niblack w^ere discontinued — the first 
because of inability, on account of feeble health, to 
perform the duties of an itinerant, and the latter 
two because they had failed to attend to the work 
assigned them. 

On the superannuated list we find but ten names. 
The names of Herrington Stevens and George W. 
Taylor appear on this list for the first time. 

William Cundiff, Henry J. Evans, Richard I. 
Dungan, Thomas P. Farmer, Newton G. Berryman, 
Bluford Henry, John Johnson, Clement L. Clifton, 
Blachley C. Wood, and George Richardson, located. 

William Cundiff had been an itinerant since 1826. 
His fields of ministerial labor were the Clarke River, 
Livingston, Little River, Big Sandy, Little Sandy, 
Highland, Little Sandy, and Lewis Circuits. In all 
these charges he had been faithful and useful. 

Henry J. Evans was admitted on trial into the 
Virginia Conference in February, 1827, and was 

pying the same scat with the author. During the sermon, 
overcome by the powerful appeals of the Bishop, he thrust 
his hand into his pocket and, taking out his pocket-book, ex- 
claimed aloud: "1 am crazy to give! I wish he would quit, 
and give me an opportunity to do so." 



158 



We stern Cavaliers. 



appointed to the Banister Circuit. In 1828 we find 
him on the Haw River Circuit, and in 1829 on the 
Elizabeth. At the Conference of 1830 he was ap- 
pointed to the Straits Circuit, in IsTorth Carolina, 
and in 1831 to the Cumberland Circuit, as super- 
numerary. In the autumn of 1831 we find him 
stationed in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, to which Con- 
ference he was regularly transferred from the Vir- 
ginia Conference, at the session held in the city of 
Norfolk, in February, 1832. His second appoint- 
ment in Kentucky w r as to the Russellville Station. 
In 1833 he was appointed to Mount Sterling Circuit, 
and in 1834 to the Winchester. During the year he 
traveled the Winchester Circuit his health became 
feeble, and at the ensuing Conference he asked for a 
location. Mr. Evans w T as an excellent man, and a 
preacher of more than ordinary promise, and was 
rising rapidly in the Conference. While he traveled 
he w r as eminently useful. His location was greatly 
regretted by his brethren. In a local sphere he was 
successful and beloved. 

Thomas P. Farmer was admitted on trial into the 
Conference of 1829. His appointments w r ere the 
Fleming, Breckinridge, Yellow Banks, Shelby, New- 
castle, and Breckinridge Circuits. He was greatly 
beloved by the people he served, and won many 
souls to Christ. As a preacher his talents were not 
of a high order, but his sermons were plain and 
practical.* 

* Thomas P. Farmer lived less than a year after he located. 
He joined the Methodist Church and embraced religion in 
1824, when only twelve years of age, and entered the ministry 



Western Cavaliers. 159 



Bluford Henry entered the Conference the same 
year with Thomas P. Farmer. His appointments 
were the Mount Vernon, Big Sandy, Hartford, Eliza- 
beth, and Green River (two years) Circuits. He was 
a good and true man. 

John Johnson had entered the itinerant ranks in 
1808, Blachley C. Wood in 1820, George Richardson 
and Clement L. Clifton in 1823. They were useful 
and true ministers of Jesus Christ.* 

AVe also find the names of Richard I. Dungan 
and Newton G. Berryman among those who located 
at this Conference. At a later period, however, we 
see them again in the itinerant ranks, prosecuting 
their ministry with undiminished zeal. 

The Kentucky Conference, at this period, em- 
braced seventy appointments, to which ninety-seven 
preachers were sent. Henry S. Duke was placed in 
charge of the Lexington District, as successor to 
the lamented Adams, who had fallen at his post. 



in his eighteenth year. He located for the purpose of visiting 
friends who had removed West, and to examine the country, 
intending to reenter the Conference the following year. He 
possessed a fine constitution, and was deeply pious. He died 
July 24. 1836, of bilious fever. During his sickness, which 
lasted eleven days, he exhorted all who came to see him to 
meet him in heaven. While dying, he said: "0 that I had 
strength and language to describe the glorious scene before 
me! I am so happy — had I strength, I would shout the high 
praise of God." His last words were, "Tell the preachers to 
be faithful." 

* For sketches of John Johnson, Blachley C. Wood, George 
Eichardson, and Clement L. Clifton, see " Methodism in Ken- 
tucky." 



160 



Western Cavaliers. 



The eloquent Jonathan Stamper follows Richard 
Tydings, whose term had expired, on the Augusta 
District. John James is returned to the Harrods- 
burg District, and William Gunn, who the previous 
year had traveled the Shelby Circuit, becomes the 
leader of the hosts in the Louisville District, in the 
place of Benjamin T. Crouch, who is sent to Shel- 
byville, Brick Chapel, and Christiansburg. On the 
Hopkinsville District we still find Isaac Collard, 
while the name of Thomas Lasley appears on the 
Greensburg, instead of that of George W. Taylor, 
who is placed among the superannuated. 

In the South-eastern portion of the State, the 
Cumberland and Kentucky Missions — embracing a 
vast extent of territory — had been included in the 
Harrodsburg District. Under this arrangement it 
was impossible for the w x ork in the mountains to 
receive such attention from the Presiding Elder as 
the interests of the Church in that region demanded. 
To this rugged field young preachers, not only 
without experience, but without ordination, were 
usually sent, and there were not ordained local 
preachers sufficient to administer baptism. It was 
deemed advisable at this Conference to form a 
mountain District, to be called the Barboursville 
District, and appoint to it a Presiding Elder whose 
entire time would be spent in that field; hence we 
find another District, with Thomas W. Chandler as 
Presiding Elder, and with six separate charges, in- 
stead of two as before, supplied with nine preachers, 
where the previous year four had been appointed. 

Last year we reported a large decrease in the 



Western Cavaliers. 



161 



membership in Kentucky; we regret that we are 
compelled to do so again. The decrease in the Ken- 
tucky Conference this year is one thousand six hun- 
dred and twenty-eight in the white membership, and 
three hundred, and seventy in the colored. In every 
District except the Barboursville a decrease in the 
white membership is reported, and the Louisville 
District alone shows an increase in the colored mem- 
bership. 

The transfer of the Cumberland and Kentucky 
Missions from the Harroclsburg to the Barboursville 
District will more than cover the decrease reported 
in the former. In the Lexington District there is a 
falling off in every charge, and in the Maysville 
District the Lewis Circuit — to which Lorenzo D. 
Parker had been appointed — is the only charge 
where any increase is reported. In the Harrocls- 
burg District, the Danville and Harrodsburg Sta- 
tion, under the ministry of William Helm, reports 
a small increase. The Yellow Banks and Newcastle 
Circuits, in the Louisville District — the former in 
charge of the indefatigable Richard D. Neale, and 
the latter served by Joseph Gr. Ward and Eli B. 
Crain, both of whom were zealous young men — 
enjoyed prosperity. In the Hopkinsville District, 
the Russellville Station, with Richard Deering as 
pastor, and the Livingston Circuit, under the charge 
of Robert F. Turner and Henry Edmondson, both 
of whom were devoted to their work, reported 
many additions to the Church. In the Greensburg 
District, an increase is reported in the Wayne Cir- 
cuit, whose preacher was Joseph D. Barnet; in the 



162 



Western Cavaliers. 



Glasgow Circuit, where Clinton Kelley and John C. 
C. Thompson were the preachers; in the Elizabeth 
Circuit, served by the good John Denham; in the 
Bardstown Station, to which John Beatty had been 
appointed; and in the Burksville Circuit, whose 
preacher was the sweet-spirited Elijah M. Bosley. 
In all the other charges in the Conference a decrease 
is reported. However, revivals occurred in several 
of the charges that were numerically weakened. In 
the Burlington Circuit, in the Lexington District, 
whose preachers were Thomas Rankin and William 
M. Crawford, sixty persons were received into the 
Church; and the Falmouth and Port William Cir- 
cuits, in the same District, enjoyed revivals. In the 
former, under the ministry of James C. Crow, 
twenty-five were admitted to membership, and in 
the latter, served by John Carr Harrison, many 
were converted. In the city of Maysville, in the 
Maysville District, the labors of Thomas Waring 
were greatly blessed; while in the same District, in 
the pleasant village of Augusta, there were nearly 
one hundred conversions and additions to the 
Church — one-fifth of them students in the college; 
and at Dover seventy additions to the Church, 
under the ministry of John W. Riggin and Peter 
Taylor. The Danville Circuit, in the Harrodsburg 
District — Gilby Kelley and Robinson E. Sidebottom, 
pastors in charge, both gifted and zealous — was 
aroused, and at a single camp-meeting, held on 
Ridgeway's land, two miles from Perryville, be- 
tween ninety and one hundred were converted. In 
the Hopkinsville District, there was an extensive 



Western Cavaliers. 163 



revival in the Bowling Green Circuit, under the 
ministry of William 8. Evans and Daniel Barksdale. 

We may properly pause, and inquire into the 
cause of so great a declension in the membership in 
Kentucky during the past two years. In several of 
the charges where extensive revivals were reported 
a decrease occurs. For the two previous years there 
had been a large ingathering into the Church; many 
hundreds had professed saving faith in Christ, and 
had become identified with his followers. That a 
dearth in religion sometimes succeeds a great out- 
pouring of the Holy Spirit is familiar to all who 
have watched the signs of the times; and that many 
become connected with the Church during a period 
of religious excitement who, when the interest and 
ardor of the hour pass away, turn back to the world 
will scarcely be denied. It was so in the apostolic 
age of the Church, and will be so to the end of 
time. While this fact may account, in part, for the 
losses to Methodism in Kentucky during the two 
past years, there is another reason to which we may 
allude. The lands in many sections of the State 
of Kentucky had reached figures that were almost 
fabulous, while the cheap lands of Missouri, Illinois, 
and Indiana invited emigration from older and more 
populous settlements. For several years preachers 
from Kentucky had been transferred to these new 
and flourishing States. As early as 1830 William 
H. Askins, John Sinclair, and Samuel Julian were 
transferred to the Illinois Conference, and John K. 
Lacey to the Missouri; in 1881 William A. H. Spratt, 
Andrew Peace, John S. Barger, and Learner B. 



164 



Western 



Cavaliers. 



Stateler left Kentucky, and identified themselves 
with the Missouri Conference; in 1832 the gifted 
and popular Peter Akers was transferred to the 
Illinois Conference; in 1834 John F. Young and 
Thomas Wallace were left without appointments 
"in view of a transfer to the Missouri Conference;" 
in the same year George C. Light was transferred 
to Missouri, Eichard Bird to Illinois, and Charles 
M. Holliday to the Indiana Conference. The ma- 
jority of these preachers had attained to eminence 
in Kentucky, and the most, if not all, of them were 
well known throughout the State. Pleased with 
the reception extended them in their new homes, in 
corresponding with the people they had formerly 
served and, in many instances, brought into the 
Church, they gave flattering accounts of the health- 
ful climate and fertile soil of these new States. 
Hundreds were thus induced to sell their homes in 
Kentucky, and go farther West. It was not unfre- 
quently the case that the membership of a single 
Society was thereby reduced one-half, and some- 
times entirely broken up. The cause, however, was 
a common one. What was lost in Kentucky was 
gained elsewhere. While Kentucky reported such 
a decline in membership in the Conference of 1835, 
the Missouri Conference reported an increase of 
nine hundred and twenty-eight white and one hun- 
dred and twenty-eight colored members, the Illinois 
Conference an increase of two hundred and thirty 
white and nine colored members, and the Indiana 
Conference an increase of two hundred and fifty- 
two white and eleven colored — making a total in- 



Western Cavaliers. 



165 



crease in these new Conferences of fourteen hundred 
and thirteen white and one hundred and forty-eight 
colored members. In 1836 the Missouri Conference 
reported an increase of nine hundred and seventy- 
two white and one hundred and twenty-four col- 
ored, the Illinois Conference seventeen hundred and 
twenty white, and the Indiana Conference two 
thousand four hundred and forty-nine white and 
one hundred and sixty-seven colored. Much of the 
decrease in Kentucky may be traced to emigration 
to these new States. 

On the Paris District, in the Tennessee Conference, 
Thomas Joyner succeeded George W. D. Harris, and 
on the Hickman Circuit we find Nathan L. IvTorvell 
and -Edmund J. "Williams, and on the Wadesboro 
Circuit John D. Neale and John H. Mann. At the 
Tennessee Conference of 1835 the Paclucah Circuit 
was formed, and Garrett W. Martin and Jacob 
Custer appointed to it. Mr. Joyner had previously 
preached the gospel of Christ in other portions of 
Kentucky, and made for himself a good name wher- 
ever he had labored. He had left the State in 1824, 
when almost a youth, and we are gratified to record 
that in the full zenith of his manhood his name 
again appears in the list of preachers in Kentucky. 
He was no ordinary man, and no preacher in the 
Conference was better qualified to follow the gifted 
Harris on the Paris District. * 

Notwithstanding the preachers were earnest and 
zealous in their labors, the membership in Jackson's 
Purchase decreased one hundred and fourteen in the 
white and thirty-five in the colored — making a total 



166 



Western Cavaliers. 



decrease in the State, for the year, of seventeen hun- 
dred and seventy white, and three hundred and six 
colored. 

This year the Church was called to mourn the loss 
of Bishop McKendree. He died in great triumph, 
March 5, 1835. 



Western Cavaliers. 



167 



CHAPTER Y. 



FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1836 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1837. 



Soldiers of Christ, arise! 

And put your armor on, 
Strong in the strength which God supplies 

Through his Eternal Son: 
Strong in the Lord of hosts, 

And in his mighty power, 
Who in the strength of Jesus trusts 

Is more than conqueror. 



iHE Conference of 1836 met in Louisville, on 



markably cold for the season of the year. On 
Monday night, before the session opened, considera- 
ble snow fell, which rendered the traveling of the 
preachers— performed chiefly on horseback — quite 
unpleasant. The attendance was full, scarcely a 
member of the body being absent. 

Bishop Soule, to whom Kentucky was assigned 
in the plan of episcopal visitation, had not reached 
the city when the Conference opened. Jonathan 
Stamper was elected President, and George Mc]S"elly 
and Richard D. Neale were elected Secretaries. 

During the morning session the several com- 




The weather was re- 



168 



Western Cavaliers. 



mittees — on Public "Worship, on Finance, and on 
Memoirs — were appointed, after which the Confer- 
ence adjourned until three o'clock p.m. 

In the meantime Bishop Soule arrived, and was 
present at the afternoon session, and took the chair. 

The report of the Book Agents at New York 
was submitted and referred to an appropriate com- 
mittee, and a committee was also appointed to 
" draw up and report a proper course of study for 
candidates for the ministry." 

The greater portion of the session was taken up 
with the examination of the characters of the 
preachers, and the election of traveling and local 
preachers to the offices of deacon and elder. 

The subject of Education and the interest of Au- 
gusta College received more consideration than any 
thing else. Resolutions were adopted, calculated to 
enlist in behalf of the college the sympathies and 
patronage of the Church and the active efforts of 
the members of the Conference. Too little had 
been done in this direction. A few of the preachers 
had used every means within their reach to promote 
the success of this institution of learning, while 
others seemed scarcely to give it a serious thought. 
To rally the Conference to its support and to 
awaken the Church throughout the State to the 
good that might be accomplished through its in- 
strumentality were the objects of the resolutions 
adopted. 

Besides what we have mentioned, nothing unusual 
took place during the session. 

Thirteen preachers were admitted on trial at this 



Western Cavaliers. 



169 



session of the Conference: Andrew J. McLaughlin, 
Greenup Barker, William B. Maxey, Edwin Roberts, 
John J. Harrison, George S. Gatewood, Theophilus 
Powell, John Waring, Seybourn Crutchfield, Robert 
G. Gardner, William James, Alanson C. Dewitt, 
Aaron H. Rice. 

The names of William Burns and Alexander 
Kessinger disappear from the list of those admitted 
the previous year. The circumstances of Mr. Kes- 
singer were such that he could not devote himself 
exclusively to the work of the ministry. Mr. 
Burns's itinerant career was brief. He had scarcely 
entered the Conference when death summoned him 
away. He was appointed to the Prestonsburg Cir- 
cuit, as the colleague of Foster H. Blades, and en- 
tered upon his work with the zeal of a true disciple 
of Christ. His ministry among the people was 
greatly blessed; but in the midst of his usefulness 
he was called from labor to reward. 

The name of John Tevis appears on the superan- 
nuated list, while the names of George W. Taylor 
and George McXelly are again restored to the ef- 
fective roll. 

James G. Leach, William S. Evans, John Redman, 
and Herrington Stevens, located. 

The name of James G. Leach first appears in the 
Minutes in 1810. After traveling a few months he 
retired voluntarily from the itinerant ranks, but re- 
entered the same in 1815, and labored in this service 
until 1823, when he located.* 

William S. Evans became a traveling preacher in 

*For a sketch, see "Methodism in Kentucky." 
8 



170 



Western Cavaliers. 



1830. His appointments were the Livingston, Chris- 
tian, Big Sandy, and Logan Circuits, Hopkinsville 
Station, and Bowling Green Circuit. After his 
location he settled in Logan county, where, by his 
exemplary life and earnest zeal, he did much good. 
At a later period he reentered the Conference, but, 
after preaching a few years, again located. 

John Redman commenced his career as a travel- 
ing preacher on the Livingston Circuit, in 1826. 
His subsequent fields of labor were the Liberty, 
Yellow Banks, Logan and Gasper, Christian, Green- 
ville, Bowling Green, and Hartford Circuits. As a 
preacher he did much good. 

Herrington Stevens was admitted on trial in 1832. 
His first appointment was to the Logan Circuit, 
after which he traveled the Bowling Green and the 
Livingston Circuits. In 1835 he was placed on the 
superannuated list, and located at the Conference of 
1836. He settled in Livingston county, where he 
practiced medicine, and preached as often as his 
health would allow. He was a good man and useful 
preacher. 

Henry S. Duke, the Presiding Elder on the Lex- 
ington District, and John Littlejohn* died during 
the year which had just closed. By a resolution of 
the Conference, Mr. Bascom was requested to preach 
a sermon in memory of these ministers. One of 
them had fallen from the walls of Zion in the midst 
of a career of usefulness and success, and before he 
had reached the meridian of life; the other had been 

* For sketches of these ministers, the reader is referred to 
the "History of Methodism in Kentucky." 



Western Cavaliers. 



171 



identified with the Methodist ministry since 1777. 
Both were good and true men, and passed away in 
holy triumph. 

The death of William Phillips had also occurred 
since the previous Conference. He joined the min- 
istry, in Kentucky, in 1831, and had risen rapidly to 
eminence and distinction. By the General Confer- 
ence of 1836, while stationed at Newport and Cov- 
ington, he was elected one of the editors of the 
Western Christian Advocate. Hardly had he entered 
upon the duties of his office when God called him. 
He died August 4, 1886 * 

The question, " What amounts are necessary for 
the superannuated preachers, and the widows and 
orphans of preachers, and to make up the deficien- 
cies of those who have not obtained their regular 
allowance on the circuits?" was asked, and the an- 
swer given was "§6,109.97." For the purposes 
stated the following amounts were collected: From 
circuits and stations, $864.45; Book Concern, $400; 
Chartered Fund, $75; collection at Conference, 
$33.50; total, $1,372.95. From this amount the 
Bishops were paid $77.50; the remainder was ap- 
plied as the question indicates. For missions there 
was collected $1,492.02. For the benefit of the 
Book Concern $237.58 was collected — of which 
amount the Church in Shelbyville contributed $170, 
Christian Circuit $20, and Shelby Circuit $47.58. 

During the two years preceding the Conference of 
1836 the Lexington District had lost two Presiding 

*A sketch of William Phillips maybe found in the "His- 
tory of Methodism in Kentucky." 



172 



Western Cavaliers. 



Elders — Adams and Duke. The name of Richard 
Tydings appears in the Lexington District, as the 
successor of Duke. Jonathan Stamper was re- 
turned to the Augusta District, and John James to 
the Harrodsburg. William Gunn, Isaac Collard, 
Thomas Lasley, and Thomas W. Chandler occupy 
the same fields they had cultivated the previous 
year. 

During the session of the Conference frequent in- 
terviews were held between the members on the 
subject of the losses sustained in the membership of 
the Church during the previous two years. While 
the causes that we have assigned were accepted as 
the reasons for the decrease, yet not a single cavalier 
felt willing that a similar decline should mark the 
annals of another year. Buckling on their armor 
afresh, they more determinately resolved to push the 
battle to the gates of the enemy, and, through their 
Captain, to conquer or perish in the struggle. Thus 
nobly impelled, each warrior marched to his new 
field of duty. 

Edward Stevenson was returned to the city of 
Lexington, where he had labored the previous year 
under discouragements which well-nigh dampened 
his ardor. In every other charge in this District the 
pastor was changed. 

In the Augusta District, Stephen Harber, who had 
been appointed as a supernumerary on the Lewis 
Circuit the year before, is reappointed to this work, 
in an effective relation. 

In the Harrodsburg District, Robinson E. Sidebot- 
tom was returned to the Danville Circuit as junior 



Western Cavaliers. 173 



preacher — the position he held during the former 
campaign. 

William Holman, in the Louisville District, is 
again sent to Louisville, while Absalom D. Fox still 
travels the Jefferson Circuit. 

In the Hopkinsville District no preacher was re- 
turned to his former appointment; while, in the 
Greensburg District, James King was again sent to 
Columbia. 

Solomon Pope, in the Barboursville District, was 
reappointed to the Mount Pleasant Mission. 

Several new Circuits appear in the list of appoint- 
ments. The Cynthiana Station, which had been 
thrown into the Circuit, is restored as a separate 
charge, in the Lexington District; while, in the Au- 
gusta District, the Minerva Circuit appears for the 
first time. In the Harrodsburg District, Ebenezer 
and Athens is made an independent charge, Bowling 
Green disconnected from the circuit and made a 
station; while, at the same time, the Hopkinsville 
Station again falls into the Hopkinsville Circuit. 
The La Fayette and Princeton Circuits, in the same 
District, appear in the Minutes, while the name of 
the Henderson Circuit is lost in that of Morganfield. 
No change occurs in the Greensburg District. In 
the Barboursville District, the change is the addition 
of Paint ville to Prestonsburg, and the formation of 
the Louisa Circuit. 

Near the close of the Conference-session Mr. Bas- 
com offered a resolution to " observe the Friday be- 
fore the 25th of December as a day of fasting and 
prayer for the prosperity of the Church/' and the 



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W e s t e r x Cavaliers. 



preachers were requested to invite the membership 
to unite with them in this service. 

The Conference closed, and without any unneces- 
sary delay the preachers were at their posts. During 
the winter an apathy pervaded the Church through- 
out the State, and under able sermons and powerful 
appeals the people seemed unmoved. The autumn 
passed, the cold months of winter followed, and were 
just dying away, when a note of triumph was heard 
on the banks of the beautiful Ohio. Martin L. Eads 
and George S. Savage — the former in his eighth 
year in the itinerant ministry, and the latter a young 
and zealous preacher in his second year — had been 
sent to the Minerva Circuit, in the Augusta District, 
which embraced the village of Dover. Early in 
February the Church at that point was blessed with 
seventy additions to the membership, and about the 
same number were converted. 

In the Greensburg District, during the following 
month, the Church in Bardstown — which enjoyed 
the ministry of Hubbard H. Eavanaugh, the faith- 
ful pastor — was greatly blessed. Under Mr. Kava- 
naugh's preaching a gracious revival began, and it 
swept through the community, reaching the Presby- 
terian Church, which was blessed equally with his 
own. Seventy persons professed religion, thirty-five 
joining the Methodist Church and the same number 
the Presbyterian. 

Returning to the Augusta District, in April the 
town of Washington — an appointment in the Ger- 
mantown Circuit — was favored with a revival of 
religion. The meeting continued for two weeks, 



Western Caval i ers. 



175 



under the supervision of Joseph Marsee and William 
M. Grubbs, both of whom were useful and zealous. 
The interest of the occasion was greatly augmented 
by the presence of John Collins, a veteran, who 
preached and labored during the meeting. About 
fifty professed religion. 

While the revival was in progress in Washing- 
ton, a note of triumph was again hQard from the 
Greensburg District. In the Wayne Circuit, under 
the faithful labors of Elijah M. Bosley and William 
B. Maxey, twenty persons were converted, and the 
work of grace was spreading all over their extensive 
circuit. 

In the month of May the work commenced in the 
Madison Circuit, in the Harroclsburg District, whose 
preachers were Absalom Woolliscroft and George S. 
Gatewoocl, both of whom were styled revivalists, 
and more than one hundred persons were happily 
converted to God. 

In the village of Campbellsville, in the Greens- 
burg District, under the ministry of Matthew H\ 
Lasley, a good and true man, seventy-three persons 
"passed from death unto life/' about the same time 
that Woolliscroft and Gatewood were rejoicing over 
the trophies they had won to their Master's cause. 
In the Greensburg Circuit — where the plain and 
unostentatious George W. Taylor had charge — in a 
neighorhood five miles from Greensburg, at a single 
meeting, in the month of July, forty persons re- 
ceived "the peace of God, which passeth all under- 
standing." At this meeting James King, a true 
evangelist, and Stephen Rogers, a faithful local 



176 



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preacher, were present, and labored shoulder to 
shoulder with the pious pastor. 

About this time a remarkable man appeared in 
Kentucky; he was an Irishman by birth. John 
Newland Maffitt was born in the city of Dublin, Ire- 
land, December 28, 1794. His father was a member 
of the Methodist Society, and endeavored to impress 
upon his son the principles of true religion. Death, 
however, deprived him of his paternal parent, leav- 
ing him in childhood to the sole guidance of his 
mother, who was a member of another Communion. 
Frivolous and gay, he passed through his youth 
forgetful of the instructions of his sainted father 
and the oft-given advice of his mother, engaging in 
every species of amusement where God and heaven 
are forgotten. 

At the age of nineteen he was arrested by the 
Holy Spirit, was powerfully awakened to a sense of 
his condition as a sinner before God, and, deeply 
penitent, pleaded for mercy, poising between hope 
and despair. The struggle was severe, and was pro- 
tracted through several days and nights; but the 
joy that succeeded was " unspeakable and full of 
glory/' From his early childhood he had enter- 
tained the impression that he would be a preacher; 
yet after his conversion we see him reluctant to 
yield to the conviction of his heart, or to listen to the 
voice which appealed to his conscience: u Woe is 
unto me, if I preach not the gospel ! " Only a few 
weeks elapse, however, until we find him praying 
in public, exhorting sinners to repent, and making 
an appointment to preach, but failed in the attempt. 



Western Cavaliers. 



177 



Discouraged and depressed, he resolved to abandon 
all thought of the pulpit, when a revival in the city 
of Dublin, under the ministry of a soldier-preacher, 
opened the way for him to exercise his gifts; and we 
soon' behold him offering hope to the despairing, 
salvation to the lost, and life to the dead. From 
time to time, without official authority from the 
Church, he continued to preach the unsearchable 
riches of Christ. His earnest appeals arrested the 
ungodly, aroused the Church, and brought much 
fruitage to his Master. Ungenerous criticism and 
opposition determined him again to decline a work 
to which he believed himself to be divinely called, 
when Arthur Noble, the friend and colleague of 
Gideon Ouseley, the famous Irish missionary, in- 
vited him to meet him in Ballymena, and travel 
with him on his missionary route. Handsome in 
person, graceful in his manners, tender in his ad- 
dress, and endowed with a powerful and persuasive 
eloquence, he soon occupied a place in the popular 
thought that could be claimed perhaps by no man 
of his age in the Emerald Isle. 

Early in life he was married to a young and very 
beautiful girl, who joined her influence with that of 
his mother to dissuade him from being a preacher. 
Added to this, pecuniary misfortunes overtook him, 
and determined him to emigrate to America. On 
the 21st of April, 1819, he landed in the city of New 
York, being in the twenty -fifth year of his age. 

In 1822 he offered himself as an itinerant preacher 
to the Xew England Conference, and was admitted 
on trial. His first appointment was with the cele- 
8* 



178 



Western Cavaliers. 



brated George Pickering, as a Conference mission- 
ary. In 1823 he was appointed to Fairhaven and 
New Bedford, and the following year he was the 
junior preacher on the Barnstable Circuit. In 1825 
he was stationed in Dover, and in 1826 in Dover 
and Somers worth. At the Conference of 1827 he 
was sent to the city of Boston, and in 1828 to Ports- 
mouth, where he continued for two years. In 1830 
he was returned to the city of Boston, and the fol- 
lowing year was left without an appointment, to 
give him the opportunity of settling his temporal 
affairs, which had become somewhat embarrassed. 
In 1832 he located. 

During the ten years that Mr. Maffitt traveled as 
a preacher he performed the duties of an itinerant 
with energy and zeal, and in the several fields he 
occupied success crowned his labors. Whether as a 
missionary, carrying the tidings of a Redeemer's 
love to the poor and the humble throughout the 
New England Conference, or lifting the standard of 
the cross in the rural districts, or unfurling its crim- 
soned banner in the capital of Massachusetts, we 
find him not only faithful, but beloved by the people 
he served, and everywhere gathering stars to deck 
the crown of his rejoicing in the hereafter. 

It is to be regretted that Mr. Maffitt turned away 
from the itinerant work, to which he was so well 
adapted; yet it is cause for gratitude that, in retir- 
ing to the local ranks, he lost none of the fire that 
had so often flashed from his eye as he presented 
the glories of the cross, nor the zeal that had dis- 
tinguished him as an itinerant preacher, nor an iota 



Western Cavaliers. 



179 



of the purpose he had formed to devote his energies 
and his life to the service of the Church. 

In 1833, in connection with Lewis Garrett, he 
issued, in the city of Nashville, Tennessee, the first 
number of the Western Methodist, a religious weekly 
paper, which from that period has continued under 
various names, as the South-western Christian Ad- 
vocate, Nashville Christian Advocate, Nashville and 
Louisville Christian Advocate, and is at present the 
Christian Advocate, the central organ of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, South. 

His fame had preceded him to the West, and 
wherever he preached vast assemblies thronged to 
hear him, eager to catch the words of life as they 
fell from his lips. As an orator he had taken rank 
with the first preachers of the age, and in the hori- 
zon of public esteem occupied a commanding em- 
inence. It was not merely the fire that lit his eye, 
nor the flashes of genius that sparkled through every 
portion of his mighty appeals, nor his lofty flights 
of oratory, that won for him a reputation and a 
name scarcely equaled in the history of the pulpit: 
it was the burning zeal that was consuming him; 
it was his fervent piety; and, above all, it was the 
brilliant success, which threw its full-orbed light 
along his path. Thousands came to hear him, and 
thousands, through his instrumentality, were con- 
verted to God and added to the Church. 

In the autumn of 1833 he entered the Tennessee 
Conference, and, with Littleton Fowler as his col- 
league, was appointed Agent for La Grange College, 
of which Robert Paine was President. In 1834 he 



180 



Western Cavaliers. 



was elected to the chair of Elocution in that col- 
lege, which position he occupied for two years. At 
the session of the Tennessee Conference of 1836 he 
requested and obtained a location, and never after- 
ward reentered the itinerant field. His mode of 
warfare in the ministry was that of a guerrilla — 
outside the regular method employed by the itin- 
erant preachers. 

It was in the summer of 1837 that Mr. Maffitt 
made his appearance in Kentucky. His earliest 
trophies in the State were won in the village of Glas- 
gow. Passing on to the city of Lexington, which he 
pronounces " one of the most beautiful cities west of 
the mountains," he entered at once upon the great 
business of his life. Edward Stevenson was the 
pastor. The stay of Mr. Maffitt in Lexington was 
protracted upward of two months, during which 
time he preached almost every day and night. On 
his first appearance in the pulpit, in that city, every 
pew in the Church was filled, the aisles were crowded 
to their utmost capacity, and the occasion was dis- 
tinguished by a quickened religious interest in the 
popular mind. On the corners of the streets, in the 
marts of trade, in places of business, the fame of 
the preacher was on every lip, while many were 
anxiously inquiring the way of life and salvation. 
The city press teemed with his praise, and the entire 
community listened to his earnest sermons, coming 
from his great, warm, Irish heart. From the very 
commencement the interest increased, and during 
his protracted stay in the city there was no abate- 
ment. Bishop Morris was present, and preached a 



Western Cavaliers. 



181 



few sermons; but the public eye was turned to Mr. 
Maffitt, who had won so largely upon the hearts of 
the people. In the Western Christian Advocate, of 
August 18, Mr. Stevenson writes: "Eighty-four per- 
sons have been converted, and our meeting is still in 
progress." At a later period Mr. Maffitt writes to 
Mr. Stringfield, editor of the South-western Christian 
Advocate: "About one hundred and- sixty, as nearly as 
I can remember, were the fruits of the revival in 
Lexington, and over one hundred and thirty became 
members of the M. E. Church, most of whom, if 
not all, were, in the judgment of charity, soundly 
converted to God. May we all be so happy as to 
meet one another around the burning throne, to 
dwell with God and the holy angels, in sweet com- 
panionship, forever ! " * 

The preaching of Mr. Maffitt was peculiar, and 
difficult to describe. We have heard ministers who 
were more profound in research and more logical 
in argument than he was; but we have seldom, in- 
deed, listened to any one who excelled in so many 
departments of ministerial work as did John New- 
land Maffitt. We have heard him when his voice 
was persuasive and soft as the harp of ^Eolus, and 
we have sat beneath his ministry when like thun- 
derbolts it fell upon the ear. His prototype was the 
great apostle of the Gentiles, whose life and charac- 
ter he loved to portray. Of St. Paul he presented 
the following beautiful portrait: 

"As he bad received his commission direct from 
heaven, he counted all worldly honor but dross when 
^South-western Christian Advocate, January 25, 1838. 



182 Western Cavaliers. 



compared to the excellency of the sacred treasure 
given him by the Lord Jesus. The glittering charms 
of time- and sense he despised, rejecting, like holy 
Moses, the splendid trophies of aspiring fame. It 
was the excellency of the religion of Jesus, disclosed 
to his mind by the power of the Holy Ghost, that 
won his great soul, and spurred him on to victory 
and conquest. 

"He therefore laid aside every weight and hin- 
derance that might encumber him in his arduous 
work, suffered himself to be stripped for the race 
and harnessed for the battle, and, girding up his 
loins, resolved, in the strength of Israel's God, to 
tread in the footsteps of that same Jesus he once 
persecuted to death in the person of his followers. 
Throwing himself on the resources of his own mind, 
buoyed up by the spirit of the holy prophets, which 
had fallen on him at his first introduction to the 
holy office, he moved forward through danger and 
suffering, not anxious to avoid either if in the path 
of duty, tampering not with sin, nor trimming be- 
tween God and the world for gain or ease. 

"He expressed cheerfulness and joy under suffer- 
ing. £ We are troubled,' says he, ' on every side, yet 
not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 
persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not 
destroyed.' <I take pleasure in infirmities, in re- 
proaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses 
for Christ's sake.' His language at Ephesus, on 
taking leave of his brethren, was expressive of the 
elevated state of his mind: 'And now, behold, I go 
bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing 



We stern Cavaliers. 



183 



the things that shall befall me there : save that the 
Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that 
bonds and afflictions abide me. But none of these 
things move me, neither count I my life dear unto 
myself, so that I might finish my course with joy.' 
And when passing through Cesarea he appeared in 
the same interesting light. ' What mean ye/ says 
he, ' to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready 
not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem 
for the name of the Lord Jesus/ 

"He teas gloriously successful to the end of his course, 
because the hand of the Lord teas with him. This is 
evident from the repeated assurances which God 
gave of almighty strength, support, and guidance. 
In visions of the night angels appeared to strengthen 
his mind against the assaults of every enemy, bid- 
ding him be of good cheer. The divine agency 
rendered him invincible, as well as patient and re- 
signed, under suffering, strengthened with all might 
by the Spirit in the inner man. What or whom 
should he fear? 

"For he had wings that neither sickness, pain, 
Xor penury could cripple or confine; 
Xo nook so narrow but he spread them there 
With ease and was at large. The oppressor held 
His body bound, but knew not what a range 
His spirit took, unconscious of a chain, 
And that to bind him was a vain attempt, 
Whom Heaven approved. 

"He was gloriously successful to the end of his course. 
The arm of God was stretched out in his behalf, and 
signs and wonders were wrought by his word. For 



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Western Cavaliers. 



upward of thirty years lie had labored incessantly in 
the Lord's vineyard, extending the savor of divine 
love to every spot he visited, or to which he sent 
his writings — encompassing sea and land, traveling 
over a vast portion of the then known world, and 
extending the Bedeemer's kingdom from the east to 
the uttermost bounds of the west. He marched 
forth into the thickest ranks of the enemy, vexing 
them with his incursions. Equipped with armor of 
divine proof, his only weapon the word of God, 
which is the sword of the Spirit, he rushed on his 
most puissant foes, assaulting them in all their 
strongholds. As he advanced, the temples of the 
gods were forsaken, the walls of superstition tot- 
tered, and the spreading glories of the cross illu- 
mined the palaces of kings. His weapon prevailed 
against the potentates of the earth, the wisdom of 
the greatest philosophers, and on the ruins of bar- 
baric pride and pontific luxury he placed the simple 
majesty of the religion of the Galilean peasant. 

"Behold this champion of the cross, after he had 
fought a good fight ! See him coming in at the close 
of the glorious warfare. With what calmness and 
grandeur he looks down upon suffering and death! 
Truly they move him not. The cross glitters on 
his bosom; his hand firmly grasps the sword of the 
Lord; a halo of glory encircles his brow; the sun- 
shine of eternity gleams upon his countenance. 

"Happy Paul! thy sun is going down in bright- 
ness, growing larger as it sinks, like that luminary, 
throwing its golden splendors far and wide over 
distant lands when itself is no longer visible to the 



Western Cavaliers. 185 



eye. Thus departed this prince of apostles from 
the field of missionary enterprise, crowned with the 
laurels of victory and glory, to reap an eternal re- 
ward in the Church triumphant above/' 

If Mr. Maffitt spoke of the temptation in Paradise, 
you would imagine yourself in the garden of Eden, 
surrounded with all its charms, or reposing amid its 
flowers, where all was joy, and innocence, and love, 
listening to strains of gratitude and praise breaking 
forth from hearts pure and holy; you would see the 
tempter insidiously entering this delightful retreat, 
and hear his siren voice as he reasoned with the 
woman, guileless and beautiful, and fresh from the 
creative touch of the almighty hand; you would 
feel the increasing danger to which she was exposed, 
as the coils of the serpent w^ere gradually fastening 
upon her, until the triumph of the enemy was com- 
plete, and all was lost. If the redemption of the 
world was his theme, he would carry you to the lofty 
mount of prophecy, and then bid you accompany 
him down the corridors of time, leaving generations 
behind you, to the period when angels announced to 
the astonished shepherds on Bethlehem's star-lit 
plains the birth of the Son of God; with Simeon, 
you would take the Babe in your arms, and watch 
the Nazarene as he passed from infancy to youth, 
and from youth to manhood; the entrance of Christ 
upon his public ministry would take place in your 
presence, and you would see him at his baptism, 
when the Holy Spirit in the likeness of a clove de- 
scended and abode upon him; you would follow 
him, while here and there he gathered a solitary 



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Western Cavaliers. 



disciple, and be entranced by the strange doctrines 
he preached in his Sermon on the Mount; you would 
mingle with the astonished multitudes while the 
blind were being restored to sight, the deaf to hear- 
ing, the dumb to speech, and would see the leper, 
scorned and hated, and exiled from society, cleansed, 
and again received into its bosom; in your presence 
the lame man would throw away his crutch, and 
leap for joy; and the tear would be wiped from the 
cheek of sorrow as Jairus received his daughter 
again to life, as the son of the widow of Nain was 
restored to his mother, and as Lazarus returned 
from the grave where he had been buried to his 
sisters at Bethany. If he describes the crucifixion, 
you stand by the cross, and see the nails as they 
pierce his hands and feet; you are touched with the 
compassion that floats in the dim and languid eyes 
of the illustrious Sufferer, and are startled as the 
words of agony, " My God, my God, why hast thou 
forsaken me?" fall from his expiring lips; the 
heavens are shrouded in blackness, fierce lightnings 
leap from cloud to cloud, and thunders peal their 
notes of sorrow, as the God-man cries, " It is fin- 
ished!" If the resurrection of Christ is the topic 
on which he preaches, the descending angel, the 
alarmed chivalry of the Roman army, the risen 
Lord, stand out with prominence; and if the subject 
is the ascension of the Redeemer, your eye follows 
the falling cloud until it rests on the side of Olivet; 
you behold the Saviour as he steps upon it, and 
then you watch it as it ascends higher and higher, 
until it is lost to sight in the immeasurable distance. 



Western Cavaliers. 



187 



and still your eye lingers in that direction until you 
hear the joyous acclaim: "Lift up your heads, 
ye gates; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; 
and the King of glory shall come in." Then a hush 
like the stillness of the sepulcher passes over the 
audience, lasting but for a moment, when once more 
from the celestial parapets a voice is heard, "Who 
is this King of glory?" The reply rolls back to 
heaven: "The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord 
mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, ye gates; 
even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the 
King of glory shall come in." Then he passes 
through the portals. 

We have heard him describe the horrors , of the 
damned until we almost gazed upon the burning 
flame, and seemed to listen to the rattling of the 
chains of the lost, and hear their groans of anguish, 
and see them as they writhed in their agony and 
woe. 'We have listened to him as he spoke of 
heaven and portrayed its joys, until the jeweled 
gates rolled back, and walls of jasper and streets of 
burnished gold met our vision, and an innumerable 
multitude, with palms and crowns, were reposing 
beneath the boughs of the tree of life, or wandering 
along the banks of the beautiful river that makes 
glad the city of God; and w^e seemed to hear their 
songs of victory and shouts of triumph, as they ex- 
claimed: "Unto him that loved us, and washed us 
from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us 
kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him 
be glory and dominion forever and ever." 

We heard him once as he talked of the Judgment, 



188 



We stern Cavalier-s. 



and the scenes of the last day appeared full in view: 
the heavens, black with angry clouds, canopied the 
world; the lightnings flashed along the sky; thun- 
ders pealed forth in every direction, till distant 
worlds reechoed the direful clangor of the last ago- 
nies of dissolving nature. Then he cried: "Behold 
a rising world, and see demons and spirits damned 
coming up from realms of blackest night, and see 
the Judge coming down the vaulted sky, attended 
by all the hosts of heaven, and all the redeemed 
from earth who had entered upon eternal life. See 
him, as he comes 7" The vast assembly that sat be- 
fore him with one accord rose from their seats and 
looked upward, expecting to behold Him who would 
judge the world, with all his shining retinue sur- 
rounding him. 

We repeat, we have heard preachers who in some 
respects excelled Mr. Maffitt, but we have never met 
with one who exercised such power over an audience 
as he did. 

From Lexington we follow him to Danville, where, 
about the 1st of September, he commenced a series 
of meetings. As in Lexington, he ' preached to 
crowded audiences, day and night, for several weeks. 
LTnder his ministry the Church was revived, back- 
sliders were reclaimed, and sinners awakened and 
converted to God. The gospel preached by him 
was mighty, through God, to the "pulling down of 
strongholds;" it was the "power of God unto sal- 
vation." Day after day eager throngs came to the 
house of God to be instructed in the way of life, and 
night after night the altar was crowded with sin- 



Western Cavaliers. 189 



cere penitents, inquiring, "What must we do to be 
saved?" In the pulpit, in the altar, in the social 
circle, on the street, he pleaded the cause of his 
Divine Master, and never seemed to be weary. 
" God forbid that I should glory save in the cross 
of our Lord Jesus Christ" was the feeling which 
animated and inspired him in the grand and noble 
work to which he had consecrated his energies and 
his life. 

From Danville we accompany him to Harrods- 
burg, where the same results attended his labors. 
iNoble man ! stars gathered on these fields deck thy 
crown to-day. At Danville and Harrodsburg one 
hundred and thirty joined the Methodist Church, 
under his ministry, while more than that number 
were converted. 

We here take leave of Mr. Mafiitt, but will soon 
meet him in other fields, prosecuting with untiring 
energy his high and holy calling. 

The name of Joseph D. Barnett first appears in 
the Minutes of 1831, at which time he was admitted 
on trial into the Kentucky Conference. He was 
born in Jefferson county, Kentucky, July 21, 1811. 
His parents were worthy and pious members of the 
Baptist Church, and they brought him up in the 
" nurture and admonition of the Lord." Under the 
Methodist ministry Mr. Barnett was effectually 
awakened and soundly converted to God, when only 
sixteen years of age. He at once became a member 
of the Methodist Church, through whose instru- 
mentality he had been brought to Christ. 

His first experience as an itinerant was along the 



190 



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waters of the Little Sandy, as the colleague of Isaac 
Malone. In 1832 he was appointed to the Big 
Sandy Circuit, with William S. Evans in charge. 
At the Conference of 1833, with Abram Long as 
the senior preacher, we meet with him on the Liv- 
ingston Circuit, in South-eastern Kentucky, and the 
following year we find him in charge of the Burks- 
ville Circuit, with the genial and warm-hearted 
Matthew N. Lasley as his colleague. From the 
Conference of 1835 we follow him to the Wayne 
Circuit, which he travels alone. It will be seen that 
much of the experience of young Barnett, up to 
this period, had been in rugged portions of the 
State. In all these fields his ministry had been 
greatly blessed in the conversion of souls. As a 
preacher he was plain and unostentatious; but in 
his manner and style there was a peculiarity that 
enabled him to reach the hearts of the people, and 
persuade them to be reconciled to God. Along the 
turbid waters of the Big Sandy and Little Sandy, on 
the banks of the Ohio and Cumberland, and amid 
the hospitable homes of Cumberland and Wayne 
counties, he had successfully borne the banner of 
the cross, and proved himself "a workman that 
needed not to be ashamed/' 

In 1836, with Alanson C. Dewitt as his colleague, 
he was appointed to the Elizabeth Circuit, in the 
Greensburg District, then embracing a large extent 
of territory. On this circuit he developed tact and 
skill, as a field-officer, for which he had never be- 
fore been distinguished. If he found a circuit in a 
lukewarm condition, through his energy, zeal, and 



Western Cavaliers. 191 



management it soon became quickened into life 
Revivals of religion had crowned his labors in other 
fields, and he entered upon his work here, deter- 
mined to succeed. The circuit was soon in a flame 
of fire. All around it revivals of religion took place, 
and under the labors of these faithful men hundreds 
were brought into the Church.* 

About the same time the Lebanon Circuit — in the 
same District — -was enjoying extraordinary revivals 
of religion; Under the ministry of Matthew If 
Lasley hundreds were awakened and converted, 
many of whom had been Roman Catholics. One 
hundred and fifty persons joined the Methodist 
Church, while the work extended to other Com 
munions. 

In the Burksville Circuit, too, with that noble 
veteran John Denham at its head, the battle was 
steadily pushed to the gate. Sixty souls were con- 
verted at a meeting in the village of Edmunton, and 
eight in Burksville, to be stars in the crown of his 
rejoicing. 

The Wayne Circuit, in which during the early 
part of the year there had been indications of good, 
was greatly blessed in the summer and autumn — 
one hundred persons having been added to the 
Church. 

We have already alluded to the revival which oc- 
curred in the town of Washington, an appointment 
in the Germantown Circuit, in the Augusta District. 
This was only the precursor of a general outpouring 

"In a class-meeting, on one occasion, nineteen persons were 
converted. 



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of the Holy Spirit throughout the circuit. At the 
close of the year two hundred additions to the 
Church were reported. The Minerva Circuit, which 
adjoined the Germantown, also enjoyed great pros- 
perity. 

The most extraordinary meeting held during the 
year in this District was a camp-meeting in the 
Carlisle Circuit, six miles from the village of Car- 
lisle. Carlisle Babbit and Theophilus Powell were 
the preachers. The meeting commenced on the 
25th of August. In different portions of the circuit 
showers of grace had fallen upon the people, and 
many had passed from darkness to light. At the 
camp-meeting, however, the work was more exten- 
sive. On Monday night, after a powerful exhorta- 
tion, more than two hundred persons presented 
themselves at the altar, asking an interest in the 
prayers of the Church. The occasion was a sublime 
one. The night was calm — its stillness broken only 
by the songs of Zion, the sobs and cries of penitents, 
and the shouts of new-born souls. Fifty persons 
were converted that night, and nearly one hundred 
during the meeting. 

In the Harrodsburg District, in addition to the 
revivals in Danville and Harrodsburg to which we 
have alluded, there were revivals in the Mount 
Sterling, the Danville, and the Somerset Circuits. 
The zealous James traveled over his large District, 
preaching the gospel and weeping over the people. 
In the Mount Sterling Circuit forty persons, who 
had been strangers to God, became his followers; 
while, under the faithful ministry of George W. 



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193 



Merritt and William. McMahon, many more were 
converted. The work which began early in this 
year in the Madison Circuit continued to spread 
until more than three hundred souls passed into the 
liberty of the children of God. In the town of 
Richmond, at a single meeting, seventy persons were 
converted. 

In the Louisville District, the Yellow Banks and 
Hartford Circuits were both greatly blessed — the 
former under the pastoral charge of Richard Hold- 
ing, and the latter under that of James D. Holding. 
The preachers were brothers, and useful ministers 
of Christ. Neither of them possessed talents of a 
high order, but both were instrumental in winning 
many souls to Christ. Faithful in the discharge of 
the duties devolving upon them, the Church pros- 
pered under their ministry, and many, through their 
instrumentality, were brought to Christ. In each of 
these circuits a camp-meeting was held in August. 
In the Yellow Banks Circuit the camp-meeting was 
held at Pleasant Grove, and for the Hartford at Isoe 
Creek. We were traveling with Mr. Gunn, the 
Presiding Elder, and were present at each of these 
meetings. Both were times of refreshing, and many 
were added to the Church. At the meeting at 
Pleasant Grove, besides William Gunn, the Presid- 
ing Elder, there were present James Gunn, his 
father — a local preacher from Tennessee — J ames D. 
Holding, and John Daveiss, John Pinkstone, John 
Phipps, and Joe 'Miller, who were among the best 
local preachers we ever knew. At the meeting at 
Noe Creek Richard Holding was present, and the 
9 



194 Western Cavaliers. 



same local preachers, with the exception of Jamea 
Gunn. 

In the Hopkinsville District, the labors of James 
H. Brooking and Edwin Eoberts resulted success- 
fully. At a meeting at Bell's Chapel thirty-three 
persons were added to the Church, and more than 
twice that number in the circuit. Elijah Sutton, in 
charge of the La Fayette Circuit, witnessed, under 
his ministry, a gracious revival of religion; while, 
in the Madison ville Circuit, Alberry L. Alclerson and 
Foster H. Blades met with extraordinary success. 
More than one hundred persons in each of these 
charges became members of the Church. • 

Other fields of labor besides those we have men- 
tioned shared in the showers of grace which had 
fallen on the Church in Kentucky. 

In the Lexington District, on the Port William 
and Falmouth Circuits, many were converted and 
brought into the Church. In the Maysvilie Dis- 
trict, the Church in Maysvilie, under the ministry 
of George W. Brush, enjoyed great prosperity. In 
the Louisville District, in the city of Louisville, 
there were " times of refreshing from the presence 
of the Lord." The Taylorsville and Newcastle Cir- 
cuits were also highly prosperous. The Columbia 
Circuit, in the Greensburg District, increased in 
numbers, in influence, and in piety. In the mount- 
ain District, while there were no extensive revivals 
at any point, there was a steady increase in nearly 
every charge. 

The total increase in the Kentucky Conference, 
for this year, was fourteen hundred and ninety -four in 



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195 



the white membership, while there was a decrease 
of one hundred and eighty-one in the colored. 

In Jackson's Purchase, we still find Thomas 
Joyner in charge of the Paris District, while Mat- 
thew P. Mitchell and Spencer Waters are appointed 
to the Hickman Circuit, Adam Goodwin and Robert 
W. Cole to the Wadesboro, and Findley Bynum and 
George W. Kelso to the Paducah. 

Matthew F. Mitchell and Spencer W aters were 
both admitted on trial at the session of the Tennes- 
see Conference of 1836, and, without any experience 
as itinerant preachers, were sent to the Hickman 
Circuit. The Minutes show that they were em- 
inently useful. At the close of the year they re- 
ported an increase of one hundred and forty-seven 
in the white membership, and one in the colored. 
At the fourth quarterly-meeting, held near Feliciana, 
thirty five persons professed religion. 

Adam Goodwin had entered the Conference in 
1834, and was appointed to the Shoal Circuit, in the 
Florence District, as junior preacher. In 1835 we 
find him on Mill Creek Circuit, in the Nashville 
District. When he came to Kentucky, in 1836, he 
brought with him the experience of two years in 
the itinerant work. His colleague, Robert W. Cole, 
had just been admitted on trial. The report of the 
membership on the Wadesboro Circuit, at the close 
of the year, shows but little increase — five in the 
white and six in the colored membership. 

Findley Bynum was a North Carolinian by birth, 
having been born in Chatham county, North Caro- 
lina, May 14, 1814. In August, 1 830, he attended a 



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camp-meeting held at Mobley's Camp-ground, where 
he was awakened and soundly converted to God. 
He w^as licensed to preach the gospel by George W. 
D. Harris, September 13, 1834, at Oliver's Camp- 
ground. At the session of the Tennessee Confer- 
ence of 1834 he was admitted on trial, and appointed 
to the Dickson Circuit, in the Nashville District, 
with Thomas L. Douglass as his Presiding Elder. 
In 1835 he was sent to the Forked Deer Circuit, as 
the colleague of John B. Summers, and in 1836 we 
find him in charge of the Paclucah Circuit, with 
George W. Kelso — who had traveled one year as 
junior preacher on the Franklin Circuit — as his 
colleague. Under the ministry of these faithful 
men the Paducah Circuit increased largely in mem- 
bership; revivals crowned their labors at several 
points, and many were added to the Church. Near 
the close of the year a camp-meeting was held for 
the Paducah Circuit, near Milburn, which resulted 
in the conversion of many souls. Such a general 
outpouring of the Holy Spirit had but seldom been 
realized in that section of country. Speaking of this 
meeting, Messrs. Bynum and Kelso, the preachers, 
in a letter to the South-western Christian Advocate, 
say: " Believers were refreshed, mourners crow r ded 
to the altar, the most wicked fell on the borders of 
the congregation, and the groves and tents resounded 
with the exultation of new-born souls. Indeed, the 
last several days of the camp-meeting the work be- 
came so powerful that of those who w r ere accus- 
tomed to attend, almost without exception, they had 
to leave the place or yield. Some w T ho w T ent off 



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197 



could neither work nor sleep, and had to return; 
others, who carue merely to revile or to disturb, 
were made the happy subjects of converting grace. 
The tenters moved home on Wednesday morning; 
but the meeting was continued, more or less, every 
day but one, until Sabbath night following. It had 
to be discontinued mostly for want of materials to 
work upon, for scarcely a sinner was left in the at- 
tending congregation; not one man remained in the 
adjacent town who did not set out for heaven, and 
few persons in the neighborhood. Seventy joined 
the Church, and upward of eighty professed religion. 
The work is running through the circuit, and souls 
are converted." * The net increase in this circuit 
was seventy-one white and four colored members — 
making a total increase, in Kentucky, of seventeen 
hundred and seventeen in the white membership, and 
a decrease of one hundred and seventy in the colored. 

* South-icestem Christian Advocate, September 28, 1837. 



198 



Western Cavaliers. 



OHAPTEE VI. 

FROM THE SESSION" OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1837 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1838. 

My talents, gifts, and graces, Lord, 
Into thy blessed hands receive; 

And let me live to preach thy word, 
And let me to thy glory live; 

My every sacred moment spend 

In publishing the sinner's Friend. 

THE Kentucky Conference of 1837 met in the 
Representatives 5 Hall, in the city of Frankfort, 
October 18. Bishop Eoberts presided, and George 
W. McNelly and George W. Brush were elected 
Secretaries. 

After the appointment of the Committees on 
Public Worship, on Finance, on Books and Period- 
icals, and on Memoirs, a communication from the 
Book Agents at New York and Cincinnati, to- 
gether with an exhibit of the affairs of the Book 
Concern, was read and referred to the appropriate 
committee. 

A resolution was offered, but not adopted, sug- 
gesting the appointment of a committee to inquire 
into "the expediency and necessity of publishing 



Western Cavaliers. 



199 



the Minutes of the Conference, for the use and ben- 
efit of the members within its bounds." 

A committee, consisting of Edward Stevenson, 
Joseph S. Tomlinson, Lewell Campbell, Henry B. 
Bascom, and Richard Tydings, was appointed to 
write a Pastoral Letter to the Church throughout 
the bounds of the Conference. 

In a former chapter we made mention of the vig- 
ilance with which the Kentucky Conference guarded 
the itinerant system, and of the dissatisfaction 
which was felt at the least departure from the old 
landmarks of Methodism. At this session of the 
Conference the following resolution was offered: 

" Whereas, many evils arise from the present state 
of our work; and whereas, a change would be of 
great advantage; therefore, 

"Resolved, That we respectfully request the 
Bishop, or a committee that he may appoint, so to 
change the work as to dissolve all the stations (the 
cities excepted), and in their stead to form small 
circuits, consisting of from ten to twelve appoint- 
ments, and that some principal town be at the head 
of every such circuit, and that one or two preachers 
be appointed to all such circuits, as their demands 
may require." 

This resolution was signed by Jonathan Stamper, 
Richard Tydings, and Thomas W. Chandler, all of 
whom were Presiding Elders. It was referred to a 
committee of seven, consisting of the Presiding 
Elders, who were instructed to report on it as early 
as practicable. 

There was an increasing tendency on the part of 



200 



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the Churches, in small towns where they were not 
sufficiently strong to support a preacher, to become 
disconnected from the circuits in which they were 
the principal appointments, and form themselves 
into stations. This policy was certainly disastrous 
to both the towns and rural districts. The stations 
thus formed would be too weak to command the 
talents and experience necessary to their success, 
while the circuits, disconnected from thriving vil- 
lages, were also weakened by the change, to an 
extent that greatly impaired their influence. The 
object of the resolution was to correct the tendency 
in this direction, and, as far as possible, to equalize 
the several charges in the Conference; and the re- 
port of the committee looked to this result. 

The Conference for several years had suffered 
from the loss of many of its ablest preachers, not 
only by death, but by transfer to other Conferences. 
Within a few years McHenry, Lindsey, Powers, 
Vance, McKnight, Ogden, Landrum, Harrison, 
Outten, Adams, Cosby, Duke, and Littlejohn had 
died, and within the same time McCown, Young, 
Wallace, Light, Bird, Holliday, Evans, and Frazee 
had been transferred to other Conferences. It would 
be difficult for any Conference to sustain itself under 
such a draught upon its members. It was proposed, 
however, to make a farther invasion upon its ranks 
by the transfer of Hubbard H. Kavanaugh to the 
Missouri Conference, for the purpose of stationing 
him in the city of St. Louis. Unwilling to inter- 
fere with the episcopal prerogative, the Conference, 
nevertheless, deemed it not improper to request the 



Western Cavaliers. 



201 



Bishop not to transfer Mr. Eavanaugh. The follow- 
ing resolution was offered by Benjamin T. Crouch 
and Henry B. Bascom: 

" Whereas, it has been represented to many mem- 
bers of this Conference that some steps have been 
taken to remove Brother Hubbard H. Eavanaugh 
from the ranks of this Conference by transfer; and 
whereas, this Conference is already very much im- 
poverished in the older portion of its membership, 
by removals, deaths, and otherwise; therefore, 

"Resolved, That we respectfully request Bishop 
Roberts to give Brother Eavanaugh an appointment 
in this Conference." 

The removal of Mr. Eavanaugh from Eentucky 
at this period would have been a serious misfortune 
to the Church in the State. No preacher in the 
Conference more fully enjoyed the confidence of the 
public, or held a warmer place in the affections of 
the Church, than did Mr. Eavanaugh. For many 
years he had occupied the most important fields, 
and his ministry was sought everywhere throughout 
the commonwealth. Endowed with intellect of a 
high order, with powers of oratory rarely equaled, 
and with zeal and devotion to the Church that no 
one could challenge, he exerted an influence that 
was felt not only in the walks of Methodism, but in 
other Communions. He was no common man, and 
the Eentucky Conference felt that if his ministry 
was needed elsewhere, for the very same reason it 
was required in Eentucky; besides, he had grown 
up among them. He had entered the Eentucky 
Conference in 1823, and for fourteen years their for- 
9* 



202 



Western Cavaliers. 



tunes and his had been one, and they felt unwilling 
that a separation between him and them should 
occur. Their petition to the Bishop was respectful; 
Mr. Kavanaugh was not transferred. 

Thomas Lasley, a prominent and influential mem- 
ber of the Conference, had become connected with 
slavery by the will of his deceased father. A com- 
mittee was appointed to "consider and report on 
this and all kindred cases which maybe referred to 
them." After a thorough investigation of the en- 
tire question, the following report was adopted: 

"The committee find Brother Lasley in posses- 
sion of eight negro slaves — one a woman aged eighty 
years, and consequently infirm; a man aged sixty, 
and his wife aged fifty; a young man and his wife, 
son and daughter-in-law of the two preceding — all 
of whom have recently fallen into his hands under 
the provisions of the will of his deceased father, and 
three boys aged, respectively, twelve, fourteen, and 
sixteen years, who were born his property. The 
committee have availed themselves of all the advan- 
tages of a full and frank interview with Brother 
Lasley. Your committee are determined that, so 
far as they are concerned, there shall be no essential 
infringement of the excellent rule of our Discipline 
on this subject; yet, in view of all the circumstances 
of this case, and former usages of this Conference 
in similar cases, your committee are induced to 
recommend to the Conference the adoption of the 
following resolutions : 

"Resolved, first, That, as soon after the adjourn- 
ment of this Conference as practicable, Brother 



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203 



Lasley be required to execute a will securing the 
emancipation of the young man and his wife afore- 
said, providing expressly that their emancipation 
shall take effect upon the death of their parents. 

"Resolved, second, That he be required to provide, 
by a bill of manumission, for the liberation of the 
three boys before named, specifying that they shall 
all go free so soon as the youngest shall have at- 
tained the age of twenty-five years." 

This report, which was adopted, was signed by 
Joseph S. Tomlinson, Joseph Marsee, Lewell Camp- 
bell, William Holman, and Robert Y. McReynolds. 

The following resolution was adopted: 

"Resolved, That the Conference, at its present 
session, proceed to appoint, by ballot or otherwise, 
or request the Bishop of the Conference to do so, 
three members of its body, whose duty it shall be, at 
the next session of the Conference, to preach, or de- 
liver addresses, before the Conference and audiences 
which may be in attendance, on the following sub- 
jects: 1. The nature, dignity and duties of the 
Christian ministry; 2. On the moral fitness and 
probable results of missionary effort; 3. On the 
nature and claims of literary education, viewed as a 
general interest, and especially viewed in connection 
with the foregoing subjects. And that this arrange- 
ment be considered as permanent, and be annually 
attended to by the Conference in future, as probable 
means, among others, of accomplishing the great 
object we have in view, as a component part of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church." 

This resolution was signed by Henry B. Bascom, 



204 



Western Cavaliers. 



Jonathan Stamper, Joseph S. Tomlinson, and Ben- 
jamin T. Crouch. The Bishop appointed Mr. Bas- 
com to deliver the sermon on the Ministry, Mr. 
Stamper on Missions, and Mr. Tomlinson on Edu- 
cation. 

Although the health of Bishop Roberts was feeble 
during the Conference, he gave full satisfaction in 
the chair, in the cabinet, and in the pulpit. He not 
only presided with the dignity becoming the high 
and holy office he had so long filled with signal 
ability, but exhibited throughout the session that 
calmness and patience for which he was distin- 
guished. In the cabinet, where the most difficult 
and delicate portion of the work of a Bishop is per- 
formed, he gave due consideration to the opinions 
of those with whom he counseled, and made him- 
self well acquainted with the gifts and peculiarities 
of the preachers, as well as with the nature of the 
work to be supplied ; while in the pulpit he proved 
himself to be a true apostle — "a workman that 
needed not to be ashamed." 

We were present at the Conference in Shelbyville 
two years before, a youth, looking to the ministry ; 
but now we were in attendance to identify our for- 
tunes for life, for weal or woe, whether in prosperity 
or adversity, with this body of tried and faithful 
ministers of Jesus Christ. In the proceedings of 
the Conference we felt the liveliest interest, and of 
much that occurred during the session we still 
cherish the fondest recollection. We remember the 
bending form of James Ward, and were impressed 
by the unpretentious Josiah Whitaker; we recol- 



Western Cavaliers. 



'205 



lect how we trembled and feared when Mr. Bascom 
examined us, previous to our admission on trial,* 
and we recall the soft and pleasant voice of Mr. 
Tomlinson; we have not forgotten the open and 
happy countenance of John James, nor the tears 
that we saw fall from the face of Edward Stevenson 
while he besought sinners to repent and turn to 
God; the keen, dark eye of Isaac Collard and the 
pleasant shake of the hand of Thomas Lasley are 
with us yet; we had seen Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, 
Jonathan Stamper, Benjamin T. Crouch, Richard 
Corwine, and William Gunn, before. The first ser- 
mon we remember to have heard was preached by 
Mr. Kavanaugh; Mr. Stamper had baptized us in 
childhood; Mr. Crouch had received us into the 
Church; Mr. Corwine had licensed us to exhort, 
and Mr. Gunn to preach; but these faithful men 
never looked so commanding as when we saw them 
in their places in the Conference. Other preachers 
were present whom we knew, and to whom we owe 

*On taking our place in the class, Mr. Bascom inquired if 
we had studied English grammar. We answered, "No." He 
then asked if we had studied geography. We gave the same 
reply. Lastly, he asked, "What English branches have you 
studied?" The answer was, "None." He said: "Then, my 
brother, Dr. Bascom (who lived a few doors from my father), 
has misinformed me; he told me that you had received a 
classical education." Embarrassed beyond expression, we 
could only say : "Brother Bascom, please pass me at present; 
and when I am composed, perhaps I can answer your ques- 
tions." With the kindness which ever distinguished him, he 
offered us words of encouragement, and then passed on until 
he reached us again, when we were able to give an affirmative 
response to his interrogatories. 



206* 



W estern Cavaliers. 



much. There was John Tevis, who had found us in 
childhood with bad associates, and had kindly taken 
us by the hand and led us to the Sunday-school; 
and there, too, we met George W. Brush, our first 
pastor, whom we had not seen for two years, and 
Richard D. Xeale, with his cheerful and smiling 
face : and others, whose memory is with us yet. 

The preaching during the Conference was not 
only instructive, but attended with great power. 
John Xewland Mafiitt was there a short time during 
the session, and preached in the Methodist Church, 
to a large and admiring audience. Many wept 
during the sermon. We heard the sermons of 
Richard Deering and Thomas H. Gibbons, preached 
to the prisoners in the State Prison ; tears flowed 
copiously. Thoughts of childhood, in its innocence, 
and of home with all its pleasures, of a father's 
advice and a mothers love, crowded upon our mind 
as we listened to the words of eternal life, delivered 
by faithful men to these unfortunate ones. Some of 
them had been reared in ease, and all, perhaps, had 
known a mother's love. How sad the hour when, 
influenced by evil associates, they for the first time 
desecrated the holy Sabbath, or took the name of 
the Lord in vain, or drank from the accursed bowl! 
Having taken the first step in sin, the second was 
not so difficult ; and thus step by step they had pro- 
gressed in vice, until they were immured in prison- 
walls, disgraced and ruined. 

Joel Peak. William McD. Abbett, Wright Mer- 
rick. Edmund M. Johnson. John C. Hardy, Wesley 
G. Montgomery, Williams B. Kavanaugh, Walter 



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207 



Shearer, Moses Levi, Albert H. Bedford, John B. 
Perry, William D. Matting, Lorenzo D. Harlancl, 
Jesse P. Murrell, Jedidiah Foster, and Calvin W. 
Lewis were admitted on trial. 

Of those who were received on trial at the pre- 
vious Conference, Greenup Barker. John J. Harri- 
son, Theophilus Powell, and Seybourn Crutehfield 
retired from the itinerant ranks. 

The names of William Atherton. Milton Jamie- 
son. John Denham. and James H. Brooking were 
added to the list of the superannuated. 

Thomas Lasley. Stephen Harber, Elijah Sutton, 
and George W. Fagg, located. 

The death of Hooper Evans, a good and true 
man. had occurred during the year just closed.* 

The support of the preachers was still far below 
their actual necessities, although the state of the 
finances showed a slight improvement over the pre- 
ceding year. The collections to meet deficiencies 
were small, but more generally distributed through- 
out the Conference than they had been in the past. 
The missionary collections amounted to two thousand 
and eighty-three dollars and six cents, which was a 
large advance on that of former j^ears. 

The revivals which had blessed the Church during 
the previous year, and which had spread through 
the State, in some sections had not abated when the 
Conference met. It was, therefore, the privilege of 
many of the preachers in entering upon their work 
to find it in a blaze. 

* For a sketch of Hooper Evans see " History of Methodism 
in Kentucky." 



208 



Western Cavaliers. 



. Henry N". Vandyke, a young man of more than 
ordinary promise, was stationed in Frankfort, where 
the Conference had been held. We have already 
alluded to the presence of Mr. Mafiitt in Frankfort 
during the session of the Conference. He left the 
city before the adjournment, but returned after a 
few days, and entered upon an active campaign. 
On the 26th of December Mr. Vandyke addressed a 
letter to Mr. Stringfield, editor of the South-western 
Christian Advocate, in which he says: "Permit me 
to say through your paper, to the friends of Zion, 
that there has been a most gracious outpouring of 
the Holy Spirit upon Frankfort. We have had a 
protracted-meeting of about nine weeks. It com- 
menced with the session of the Annual Conference, 
which was held in this place, and which closed Oc- 
tober 25. Just at its close our beloved Brother 
Maffitt, of your place, visited us, and preached every 
day, and frequently twice a day, for about six weeks, 
the Lord blessing his labors greatly. There have 
been about one hundred and thirty conversions; one 
hundred and twenty have joined the Methodist E. 
Church, about fifteen the Baptist, and several the 
Presbyterian. The work still goes on in a most in- 
teresting manner. I have had the pleasure of being 
in and witnessing several revivals, but I do not 
know that I ever saw a more genuine revival in all 
my life. What" is remarkable about it is a large 
majority of the converts are men, principally young 
men. There were, however, some gray -headed 
fathers, and some of middle age. A decided victory 
has turned upon the side of Israel; but we are still 



Western Cavaliers. 



209 



praying and looking for more. Our hope is that 
the glory of God may fill the whole city, and his 
praise be sung by every tongue. Doubtless many 
will rejoice through eternity that Brother Maffitt 
visited Frankfort. They think of him with emo- 
tions of deepest gratitude; and certainly no man 
deseiwes more applause than he, for his perseverance 
and zeal. The salvation of souls seems to be his 
only object; hence, he labors most inclefatigably, clay 
and night, amidst discouragements, difficulties, and 
persecutions. May God long preserve his life, that 
he may prove a blessing to thousands more!"* 

While hundreds were listening to the appeals of 
Mr. Maffitt in the city of Frankfort, Francis A. 
Dighton, of the Erie Conference, Agent for the 
American Bible Society, was proclaiming salvation 
to the vast assemblies that waited upon his ministry, 
in the Fourth-street Church, in Louisville. 

" Mr. Dighton was born in Erie county, Pennsyl- 
vania, October 7, 1812. On the 24th of June, 1827, 
he experienced religion, at a camp-meeting held in 
the town of Yillenova, isew York. In 1833 he was 
admitted on trial, in the traveling connection, into 
the Pittsburgh Conference, and appointed to the 
AVestfield Circuit, in the State of New York, and 
the following year to the St. Clairsville Circuit, in 
Ohio. In 1835 he was stationed in Cleveland, 
where he remained two years. In 1837 he traveled 
as Agent for the American Bible Society. The du- 
ties of the agency which he had accepted, and which 
he was faithfully prosecuting, brought Mr. Dighton 
*South-iv ester n Christian Advocate, January 4, 1838. 



210 



Western Cavaliers. 



to the city of Louisville, where he was destined to 
gather many stars to deck the crown of his rejoic- 
ing. Consumption, that sure destroyer, had fastened 
its fangs in his system, and he was rapidly hasten- 
ing to the grave. He had a message, however, 
from God to mankind, and he was delivering it 
with an energy and ardor to which his wasting 
strength was not equal. Easy in his manners, agree- 
able in conversation, eloquent in the pulpit, and 
fervent in his work, he was beloved wherever known. 
His labors in Louisville were greatly blessed. Mr. 
Tydings, stationed at Fourth and Eighth streets, 
with John Christian Harrison as his colleague, 
writes from Louisville: "With great pleasure I 
would inform you that the great Head of the Church 
has, in the abundance of his mercy, visited this 
place. As hard, and dark, and wicked as it has 
been, the Lord has made known his power and 
saving grace to many precious souls, in a most won- 
derful manner. Between seventy and eighty were 
received into the Church on probation, in about two 
weeks after the work commenced, the most of 
whom profess to be happily converted to God; and 
one of the best omens that I have noticed is that a 
considerable number are children from ten to fifteen 
years of age, the most of whom have been carefully 
nursed in the precious — yes, precious — Sabbath-school. 
Such was the rapidity and glory of the work that as 
many as twenty or upward professed to be converted 
in one night. Glory to God for his unspeakable 
goodness! and let all the Church shout aloud, Amen! 
And 6 what shall be done unto the man whom the 



Western Cavaliers. 211 

king clelighteth to honor?' and what can be greater 
honor than to be made instrumental in bringing souls 
to God? Surely, this is the greatest ever conferred 
upon man. Then, it can be no harm to say, on the 
present occasion, that the principal, if not sole, agent 
in this good work here was our well-beloved Brother 
Francis A. Dighton, Agent for the American Bible 
Society, who was on a visit to this place. He labored 
constantly and faithfully, day and night, for about 
the space of two weeks, and great and glorious suc- 
cess attended his word. Many here, no doubt, shall 
rise up in the great day and call him blessed; and 
we would, as we should, give all the glory to His 
abounding grace, and at the same time thank Him, 
also, for sending such an instrument of good among 
us. May God bless our dear young brother, and 
make him still more abundantly successful! The 
good work has not altogether subsided, and we hope 
it will continue until all shall be brought home to 
God."* 

Mr. Dighton had come to Louisville a stranger, 
almost unknown ; he left the city with the blessing 
of hundreds. f 

The notes of triumph at Fourth-street had not 
died away before the Brook-street Church, in the 
same city, also experienced a revival, which had no 
parallel in Louisville in the past. The meeting 
commenced about the first of January, under the 
ministry of George W. Brush, the pastor of the 

* Western Christian Advocate, December 29, 1837. 
fMr. Dighton's health rapidly declined after he left Louis- 
ville. He died December 26, 1838. 



212 



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Church, and soon showed indications of a good 
work. After it had been in progress for five weeks, 
without any cessation, Mr. Brush writes: "There is 
now going forward in the Methodist Church, on 
Brook street, one of the most powerful revivals of 
the work of God that has ever been seen here. It 
is now five weeks since it began, but for seven days 
past it has swept all before it. The crowd is so 
great every evening that few pretend to keep their 
seats, and unless the mourners take their place in 
the altar before preaching, it is fruitless to attempt 
making their way thither after the crowd has con- 
vened. We regularly dismiss the people at ten 
o'clock, but they do not leave until twelve and one 
o'clock. We are unable to give the number of con- 
verts; we kept count for awhile, but the battle grew 
so warm that no one could tell who or how many 
were blessed. There were mourners in every part 
of the house. One hundred and twenty-seven have 
given in their names to join the Church. A great 
many — perhaps seventy -five— have been converted; 
and yet, on last evening, more than sixty were at 
the altar for prayer and instruction. Among all 
the converts, we know of only three or four who did 
not join the Church before they found the blessing. 
The character of those who have joined gives good 
ground to hope that this will prove to have been a 
sound and genuine work of God. We have had 
comparatively but little preaching. The sermons 
preached have seldom been more than thirty min- 
utes long, and often we exhort and call the mourners 
at once. The members of the Church were a little 



Western Cavaliers. 



213 



slow at first to go into the work; but when once 
they made a break, they threw their whole souls into 
it. Many of the sisters, too, have been 6 our helpers 
in Christ Jesus.' " * - 

The meeting was still in progress when the above 
letter was written. The interest continued to in- 
crease, reaching in its influence every portion of the 
city. At a later period another letter is published, 
from the pen of the pastor, announcing that two 
hundred and twenty persons had joined the Church, 
and about the same number had been converted to 
God.f The meeting continued forty days, and be- 
fore its close four hundred persons joined the Church. 

A letter from Benjamin T. Crouch, the Presiding 
Elder of the Louisville District, dated Frankfort, 
Kentucky, March 14, to the Western Christian Advo- 
cate, says: "We have gracious times in Louisville. 
Nearly four hundred have been added to the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, in that city, during the last 
three months. Conversions have been numerous 
and powerful. Glory to God for his saving influ- 
ence! Our Baptist and Presbyterian friends have 
also been much refreshed. The work is very gen- 
eral in the city, and is still progressing. God is 
reviving his work elsewhere in this District." 

During* this year the white membership of the 
Church in Louisville was almost doubled, and the 
colored membership increased thirty-three per cent. 
Mr. Crouch, in his letter, refers to revivals in other 
portions of his District. In almost every charge 

* Western Christian Advocate, March 9, 1838. f Western Chris* 
tian Advocate, March 23, 1838. 



214 



Western Cavaliers. 



there were " times of refreshing from the presence 
of the Lord/' and in some extraordinary outpour- 
ings of the Holy Spirit. The Hardinsburg Circuit 
was greatly blessed. The preachers were Daniel S. 
Barksdale and Moses Levi — the former a young 
man of great worth, who had been in the Confer- 
ence since 1834, and the latter a converted Jew who, 
although fifty years of age, had just been admitted 
on trial. In the month of February a meeting was 
commenced in the village of Brandenburg — a small 
town on the Ohio River — and was continued through 
several weeks, at which one hundred and two per- 
sons joined the Church, and more than that number 
made a profession of religion. It rained almost 
constantly during the meeting, and the church was 
unfavorably located for the community; yet, day 
and night, the people, with scarcely a sidewalk in 
any part of the town, walked through the deep 
mud to the house of God. The church was con- 
stantly crowded, and the result was glorious. As 
the year progressed other portions of the circuit 
were equally favored, until over three hundred per- 
sons were added to the Church. 

The Jefferson Circuit — to which Richard Deering 
and Williams B. Kavanaugh were appointed — en- 
joyed much prosperity. Mr. Kavanaugh joined the 
Conference at its previous session, but Mr. Deering 
had been an itinerant since 1832. He was born in 
Greenup county, Kentucky, August 25, 1811. In 
the month of June, 1828, before he was seventeen 
years old, at Dement's Chapel, in the same county, 
„ he was received into the Church as a seeker of re- 



Western Cavaliers. 215 

ligion, by NehemiahA. Cravens. A year passed — ■- 
a year of doubts, and fears, and struggle — before he 
realized a sense of the pardoning love of Christ. 
During this time his father had removed to Mis- 
souri. It was June, 1829, when he was converted. 
Almost despairing of the mercy of God, which he 
had so long and so earnestly sought, he retired to a 
pine-forest, on the bank of Current River, in Wayne 
county, Missouri, where, in agony and prayer, he 
poured out his soul to God. At this time and place 
he was powerfully converted. Returning to Ken- 
tucky, he met with Thomas Waring, the junior 
preacher on the Little Sandy and Highland Circuit, 
who not only invited but urged him to accompany 
him around the circuit. Impressed with the con- 
viction that he ought to preach the gospel of Christ, 
he pleaded every excuse rather than enter on the 
responsible work. His youth, his inexperience, his 
want of qualifications for the duties of an itinerant 
preacher, were offered as arguments; but "Woe is 
unto me if I preach not the gospel ! " confronted him 
by day and by night. On his tour with Mr. Waring 
he exhorted a few times, and finally attempted to 
preach, and afterward preached several times before 
Mr. Waring left the circuit. Unwilling to enter 
the Conference, Mr. Corwine, the Presiding Elder, 
kindly proposed to reserve a place for him on the 
Hinekstone Circuit, as junior preacher, if he would 
promise to fill it. He conferred with his father, 
who gave his consent, and with older members of 
the Church, who encouraged him to take up the 
cross. On the 9th of November, 1831, he bade 



216 



We stern Cavaliers. 



•adieu to his parents, and brothers and sisters, and 
started for his field of labor. On his way thither he 
stopped at the home of Mr. Corwine, who resided 
in Flemingsburg, and on the following day, in com- 
pany with the Presiding Elder, continued his jour- 
ney to his charge. He reached the circuit in time 
for the first quarterly-meeting, which was held in 
Millersburg. Martin L. Eades was the preacher in 
charge, and to him was committed the care of young 
Deering. The circuit included more than twenty 
preaching-places, one of which was in Paris, where 
his itinerant ministry commenced. He continued 
to preach with varied success until the second quar- 
terly-meeting, which began May 12, 1832. At this 
time he was made a licentiate, having exercised his 
gifts up to this period under the authority of the 
Presiding Elder — preaching nearly one year before 
he was licensed. 

William B. Landrum traveled the Lewis Circuit 
this year. The fourth quarterly-meeting on his cir- 
cuit was a camp-meeting, and was held at Bethel. 
Among the preachers who were present on that 
occasion, and preached, Mr. Landrum, in his Auto- 
biography, mentions Richard Deering. He says: 
"I have often thought of a sermon he preached at 
that meeting. His text was, ' I have a message from 
God unto thee. 5 He declared his message in such a 
manner as to have a wonderful effect on the congre- 
gation." The year spent by Mr. Deering on the 
Hincks'tone Circuit was profitable to him as well as 
a blessing to the Church. He had entered fully into 
the labors of an itinerant preacher, and " the pleasure 



Western Cavaliers. 217 



of the Lord had prospered in his hands." In every 
portion of the circuit he had gathered souls into 
the Church, and witnessed gracious revivals of re- 
ligion. 

At the fourth quarterly-meeting, September 1, 
1832, he was recommended to the Kentucky Annual 
Conference, and was duly received. Richard Cor- 
wine, the Presiding Elder, under whose auspices he 
had entered the itinerant field, was sent to the 
Fleming Circuit, aiid we are not surprised that he 
requested the appointment of Richard Deering as 
his colleague. The year was one of great pros- 
perity. Revivals of religion occurred throughout 
the circuit, and hundreds were brought to Christ 
and added to the Church. The Asiatic cholera was 
sweeping through that section of the State, spread- 
ing consternation along its path, and carrying hun- 
dreds to the grave. Before its appearance the 
minds and hearts of the people were turned toward 
religion, and amid its ravages there was no abate- 
ment of interest on this great question. So intense 
was the feeling of the people on the subject of re- 
ligion, and so wide-spread was the revival influence, 
that the Quarterly Conference requested that Mr. 
Deering be allowed to remain on the circuit during 
the session of the Conference, and carry on the 
work, aided by Benjamin Xorthcott and other local 
preachers. 

At the Conference of 1833 Richard Deering was 
sent to the Germantown Circuit, as the colleague of 
Francis Landrum. In this field, as in those he had 
previously occupied, he was eminently useful. The 
10 * 



21S 



Western Cavaliers. 



preacher in charge was distinguished for his great 
zeal and abundant success. Following in the lead 
of this great revivalist, the young preacher, like a 
flame of fire, passed through his work, preaching 
the gospel and exhorting sinners to be reconciled to 
God. The circuit was in a blaze: the cries of pen- 
itents pleading for mercy, and the shouts of new- 
born souls, were heard everywhere. 

At the following Conference we find him in 
Louisville, as the colleague of William Holman. 
William P. MeKnight, of precious memory, had 
preceded him in that city, and had fallen soon after 
entering upon his work. The labors of Mr. Deering 
hitherto had been in the rural districts, although in 
the most inviting fields in the Conference. The 
duties of a city pastor differ materially from those 
of a preacher on a circuit : the labor is much more 
onerous, presenting at the same time much less va- 
riety. In this new and interesting sphere the young 
preacher not only sustained himself, but was instru- 
mental in the accomplishment of much good. 

It was during the pastorate of Mr. Deering in the 
city of Louisville that we first met him. Late in the 
spring of 1835 he visited Shelbyville for the purpose 
of aiding George W. Brush in a meeting. Youth- 
ful in appearance, courteous in his manners, and 
withal modest and unassuming in his deportment, 
and able and interesting in the pulpit, he won upon 
the hearts of the people, not only in the Church, but 
throughout the community, as few men had done. 
His voice was the most melodious we had ever heard, 
and the words of life, as they fell warm from his 



Western Cavaliers. 219 



lips, penetrated every heart. He was a favorite of 
the young, the middle-aged admired and loved him, 
while the old regarded him with favor and affection. 
"With timidity we approached him as he was leaving 
the pulpit, the first evening he preached, and offered 
him our hand. Looking us steadily in the face, he 
said, "Young man, God has work for you to do." 
He had never seen us before, and did not ask our 
name, yet he gave utterance to a sentiment from 
which we were endeavoring to escape. 

At a later period in the year he attended a camp- 
meeting at CardwelPs Camp-ground, three miles east 
of Shelbyville, where he preached with great powder 
and success. His singing, too, was sweeter than 
any we had ever heard. That beautiful hymn of 
Kirke White's was his favorite: 

Wh|ii, marshaled on the nightly plain, 

The gb'tt'ring host bestud the sky, 
One star alone of all the train 

Can fix the sinner's wand'ring eye. 
Hark! hark! to God the chorus breaks, 

From every host, from every gem; 
But one alone the Saviour speaks, 

It is the Star of Bethlehem. 

At the close of the year, in Louisville, he was 
married to Mrs. Amanda McGrath, a young widow 
of deep piety and of rare accomplishments. 

From Louisville we follow him to the Russellville 
Station, and thence to the Newcastle Circuit — in 
both of which charges he was beloved and useful. 
His next appointment was the Jefferson Circuit, 
where we find him the present year. Although the 



220 



Western Cavaliers. 



ministry of Mr. Deering on the Jefferson Circuit 
was not so signally blessed as on other fields where 
he had labored, yet through his instrumentality the 
Church was built up, and many were brought " from 
darkness to light." During the year fifty persons 
were added to the Church. 

Early in the summer the Hartford Circuit — the 
extreme appointment in the Louisville District — was 
blessed with extraordinary revivals. The preacher 
was Joseph Gr. Ward. Mr. Ward was the son of the 
Rev. James Ward, whose name had been for many 
years a household word in the Methodist families of 
Kentucky. He was born in Botetourt county, Vir- 
ginia, August 29, 1805, and was brought up in Jef- 
ferson county, Kentucky, where his father settled in 
1807. Although the son of a Methodist preacher, 
he did not embrace religion, nor become a member 
of the Church, until he attained his majority. At a 
camp-meeting at Shrader's Camp-ground, in 1826, 
he was powerfully awakened under the ministry of 
Richard D. Neale, and at the same meeting was 
converted and joined the Church. Believing him- 
self to be divinely called to preach the gospel, he 
was licensed by Marcus Linclsey, by order of the 
Quarterly Conference of Jefferson Circuit, October 
6, 1828, and at the same time recommended to the 
Kentucky Conference for admission on trial. 

The first appointment of Mr. Ward was to the 
Cumberland Circuit, with James C. Crow in charge. 
The circuit to which he was sent embraced portions 
of Rockcastle and Pulaski counties, and the coun- 
ties of Laurel, Clay, Knox, and Harlan, and spread 



Western Cavaliers. 



221 



over the most rugged portion of the State. Al- 
though there was no general revival on the work, 
yet sixty-eight persons were added to the Church, 
and about the same number professed to find the 
forgiveness of sins. At the Conference of 1829 he 
was sent to the Madison Circuit, with the saintly 
Samuel Harrison. Notwithstanding the fidelity 
with which these preachers performed the duties 
assigned them, there was no ingathering into the 
Church on this work. Here and there a solitary 
individual became identified with the people of God; 
yet no remarkable demonstrations of divine power 
were seen or felt. In 1830 his appointment was to 
the Lewis Circuit, with Francis Landrum. The 
preacher in charge from some cause failing to go to 
the circuit, Mr. Ward was placed in charge, and 
John W. Riggin — then a local preacher — employed 
to assist him. The year was one of great prosperity. 
At a camp-meeting in Lewis county, held in the 
summer of 1831, on Cabin Creek, many precious 
souls were awakened and converted. The following 
year we find him on Germantown Circuit, with 
George W. Brush. The removal of Mr. Brush to 
the pastoral charge of the Church in Maysville, in 
the early part of the year, left Mr. Ward alone on 
the circuit, where, through his instrumentality, 
many were gathered into the fold of Christ. From 
the Germantown Circuit we follow him to Bowling 
Green — a circuit with twenty-eight appointments, to 
be filled every four weeks. Successful as Mr. Ward 
had been on other fields, in this his success was of 
eclipsing superiority. At almost every appointment 



222 



Western Cavaliers. 



sinners were awakened and penitents converted. 
Near the close of the year, at a camp-meeting held 
at Drake's Camp-ground, in Warren county, the 
revival bore down every thing before its mighty 
power. Hundreds were awakened and cried for 
mercy, and at this meeting about seventy persons 
found the pearl of great price. The pastor of the 
Church in Bowling Green — Thomas H. Cropper — 
having left his work because of affliction, late in the 
winter, the station was added to the circuit, and 
formed a part of Mr. Ward's field of labor. We 
have more than once alluded to the appearance of 
cholera during the spring and summer of 1833. 
The interior of the State was suffering to an alarm- 
ing extent, and the epidemic was making rapid 
progress in its march toward Southern Kentucky. 
In Bowling Green — at that time a comparatively 
small village — a conference was held by the minis- 
ters of the several Communions, and a day of fasting 
and prayer appointed for the purpose of averting 
the threatening scourge, and to ask God to revive 
his work among the people. At the appointed time 
the Christians of all denominations met together in 
the Baptist Church, and many and fervent prayers 
were offered up to God. A few days later a meeting 
commenced in the Baptist Church, under the minis- 
try of Mr. Chapman, a Cumberland Presbyterian, 
and other ministers of that denomination, in which 
all the Churches united, and at which about two 
hundred persons "tasted" for the first time "the 
good word of God and the powers of the world to 
come." Bowling Green was not only blessed with 



i 



Western Cavaliers. 



223 



this great revival, but no case of cholera occurred 
there during the season. 

In 1833 we find Mr. Ward on the Shelby Circuit, 
with William Helm. He only remained on the 
Shelby Circuit until the following spring, when the 
business of his father rendered it necessary for him 
to return home, and at the ensuing Conference to 
ask for a location. He continued in a local rela- 
tion but one year, during which time he preached 
almost as constantly as he had done in an itinerant 
capacity. 

While sustaining the position of a local preacher, 
in the summer of 1835, he united with Mr. Remley, 
a Presbyterian minister, in a meeting in Middle- 
town, and here their labors were greatly blessed. 
Many persons turned " from darkness to light." As 
the result of this meeting, twenty -five persons joined 
the Presbyterian Church, and fifty the Methodist, 
and a subscription was taken up to build a house of 
worship for each denomination. 

Eager to devote his life to the one work of doing 
good, in 1835 we find his name again in the Minutes, 
and on the Xewcastle Circuit. Without any gen- 
eral revival, the Church enjoyed " times of refresh- 
ing from the presence of the Lord." In 1836 his 
name appears in connection with the Breckinridge 
Circuit, where he found much to discourage him, 
and met with but little success. 

At the Conference of 1837 he was sent alone to the 
Hartford Circuit, where we meet with him faithfully 
prosecuting his work as a minister of Jesus Christ. 
Early in the spring, at a meeting held three miles 



224 



We stern Cavaliers. 



from Hartford, at Goshen Meeting-house, thirty 
persons were converted in a single week. The 
third quarterly-meeting, which was held in Hart- 
ford, commenced May 19, and was protracted for 
two weeks. At this meeting between ninety and 
one hundred professed religion, and eighty -one 
joined the Methodist Church. The labors of Mr. 
Ward, during the continuance of the meeting in 
Hartford, were very arduous. The duties of the 
Presiding Elder forbade his remaining only a few 
days at the meeting, and the claims of other por- 
tions of the circuit, which was a large one, required 
the pastor to be absent a large portion of the time. 
Unwilling to abandon a work that promised so 
much blessing to the Church, Mr. Ward would 
leave Hartford in the morning, and attend his ap- 
pointments in the country, and return at night and 
preach in the village. At the close of the year 
more than two hundred persons had been added to 
the Church. 

As a preacher Mr. Ward took high rank with the 
young men of promise in the Conference. 

The net increase in the Louisville District was 
five hundred, and ninety white and one hundred and 
seventy-seven colored members. 

We have already referred to the revival in Frank- 
fort, in the Lexington District, under the ministry 
of Mr. Maffitt. The interest of the meeting did 
not terminate with the labors of this distinguished 
preacher. Throughout the year a lively concern 
was manifested on the subject of religion, which 
extended to the State Prison — more than thirty of 



Western Cavaliers. 



225 



the unfortunate inmates of that institution entering 
upon a better life.* 

We follow Mr. Maffitt from Frankfort to George- 
town, where sixty persons, under his ministry, are 
brought to a saving knowledge of the truth, as it 
is in Jesus. The interest awakened by his labors 
in this beautiful village can scarcely be expressed. 
All classes of society went to hear him, and a deep 
religious impression rested on every mind and heart. 

While the Church at Georgetown w T as receiving 
valuable accessions, the labors of Henry E. Pilcher, 
stationed at Newport and Covington, were proving 
successful. At a meeting, commencing near the 
first of February, in the city of Covington — where 
Mr. Pilcher, the pastor, was aided by Messrs. Ham- 
line and Sw^ormstedt — one hundred and ten per- 
sons became members of the Church. Mr. Pilcher, 
in a letter to the Western Christian Advocate, says: 
"I am happy to say that the work of God is still 
progressing in this station, and in a more glorious 
manner than ever before witnessed. For five weeks 
past we have been, almost every day and night, 
more or less engaged in the services of the sanc- 
tuary. The set time to favor Zion surely has come, 
and the current of salvation is rolling over the 
whole city. There are but few in this place who 
are disposed to raise the standard of opposition, and 
many of those w T ho in the incipient stages of this 
revival were the most violent opposers of the work 
of God have become the most zealous advocates of 

* Henry N. Vandyke in the Western Christian Advocate, May 
18, 1838. 
10* 



226 



Western Cavaliers. 



the cross. I here cannot forbear mentioning one 
circumstance that occurred during the progress of 
this glorious work. At one of our meetings, whilst 
the saints of the Most High were exulting in the 
triumphs of the cross, and penitents were earnestly 
pleading for mercy, a lady in the congregation, who 
was looking on, saw with amazement two of her 
daughters appear deeply interested in the work. 
One of them, having obtained the blessing of justi- 
fication the night previous, was seated in a chair, 
instructing her sister, who was kneeling, with her 
head reclining upon her lap, and sighing for re- 
demption through the blood of Christ. This sight 
was appalling to the mother, who had been advised 
by some of her friends to take care of her daughter, 
or those Methodists would be the cause of her 
death. In the trepidation of her mind she sprang 
from her seat, rushed forward, and wrested her 
daughter from the altar, seated her on a bench, and 
endeavored to quiet her; but all to no purpose. 
The child refused to be comforted. The mother 
was urged to permit her daughter to seek religion. 
"We assured her there was no danger, inasmuch as 
the same Power that had wounded was able to heal. 
She concluded the next evening that her daughter 
might go to the altar again; and while the child 
was earnestly pleading for mercy, the mother gazed 
upon her in sadness and silence. God soon spoke 
peace to the soul of her child, who proclaimed aloud 
the song of redemption. The mother began to 
quake and tremble, and exclaimed: 'That is the 
right kind of religion! J will know the next time 



Western Cavaliers. 



227 



whom to believe/' and immediately bowed at the 
altar, and began, herself, to plead for mercy. When 
the door of the Church was opened, the same night, 
she came forward and gave her name for member- 
ship, and on the next day, at a prayer-meeting, the 
daughters saw their mother powerfully converted to 
God. how delightful to see the mother embrac- 
ing her daughters, and all of them exulting in the 
love of God together — all of one mind and of one 
heart ! I never saw a revival of religion progress 
more regularly than in this place. Conversions have 
been clear and powerful. Indeed, the greater por- 
tion of the whole number that have joined on pro- 
bation have witnessed a good confession before God; 
and my prayer to God is that they may continue so 
to do until they may all come to Mount Zion, where 
they will join with all the redeemed in the chorus 
of the skies. Since the former accounts which I 
gave you of the revival in this station we have re- 
ceived into the Church, on probation, one hundred 
and ten. making an aggregate of one hundred and 
ninety received on probation since the work com- 
menced. Our prayer is that the good work may 
still go on till ail the people are converted to God. 
My soul is happy while I write, and. I can truly say 
I never felt more like weathering out the storm and 
grasping the crown of life eternal than I do at this 
time. To God be all the glory ! " * 

In the Falmouth Circuit, where Joel Peak trav- 
eled alone, thirty persons joined the Church before 
the first of April; and in the Cynthiana Circuit, 



* Western Christian Advocate, March 9, 1838. 



228 



We stern Cavaliers. 



under the ministry of James D. Holding, a revival 
occurred at Salem Church, in which several Sunday- 
school scholars professed religion and were brought 
into the Church. In the Cynthiana Station, the 
Church, under the ministry of Hartwell J. Perry, 
enjoyed a gracious season. 

James C. Crow and Thomas R. Malone this year 
traveled on the Burlington Circuit. Mr. Crow was 
born in Adair county, Kentucky, March 1, 1802. 
His parents, Thomas and Nancy Crow (formerly 
Nancy Danley), came from Virginia to Kentucky at 
an early day, and settling first in Adair county, re- 
moved at a later period to the county of Jefferson. 
Thomas Crow was not a professor of religion, but 
his wife was a Christian woman and a member of 
the Baptist Church, and endeavored to bring up her 
children "in the nurture and admonition of the 
Lord." The triumphant death of a brother, when 
James C. Crow was about eighteen years of age, 
not only affected his heart, but turned his thoughts 
to the subject of religion. The funeral-sermon of 
his brother was preached by James Ward, and 
under his appeals he resolved to seek the Lord at 
once. 

Leaving home for the purpose of learning a trade, 
he became an apprentice to Samuel Lyon, a local 
Methodist preacher, residing in Shelbyville, whose 
business was that of a house-joiner. Here he had 
the opportunity of attending Church regularly. 
Deeply troubled because he was a sinner before God, 
he attended a camp-meeting near Charleston, In- 
diana, where he was converted. 



Western Cavaliers. 229 



Speaking of this great change, Mr. Crow says; 
"On the 15th of August, 1820, 1 have reason to be- 
lieve that God, for Christ's sake, pardoned my sins. 
I had such a clear and satisfactory view of the 
mercy and sufficiency of Christ to save sinners that 
I thought I could tell everybody just how to get 
religion, and under this impression I commenced 
directing penitents to look to Jesus, the Friend of 
sinners. I had the pleasure of witnessing ten or 
twelve conversions within a few hours after my 
own. It appeared to me that every person was 
going to be religious; for all things had become 
new, and all was glorious within and without." 

The impression that it was his duty to call sinners 
to repentance alarmed him. Without the advan- 
tages of even a common education, and possessed 
of a natural diffidence, he was unwilling to yield 
to his convictions. The struggles of nearly three 
years so wrought upon his mind and heart that he 
consented to receive a license to exhort, and two 
years later to preach the gospel of Christ. 

In 1825 he was recommended to the Kentucky 
Conference, and admitted on trial. His first field of 
labor was the Somerset Circuit, as the colleague of 
Thompson Holliman. Success attended the minis- 
try of these faithful men: one hundred members 
were added to the Church. 

In 1826 he traveled on the Madison Circuit, under 
the guidance of Josiah AVhitaker as the senior 
preacher, where forty-two persons witnessed a good 
confession. 

In the autumn of 1827 he was appointed in charge 



230 



Western Cavaliers. 



of the Cumberland Circuit (afterward Goose Creek 
Circuit), with George W. Martin and Richard Bird 
as his colleagues.* One hundred and seventy-five 
additions to the Church were reported as one of the 
results of this year's labor. The following year we 
find him on a portion of the same circuit (yet under 
the same name), with Joseph G. Ward as his col- 
league, where his ministry was again signally blessed. 
During this year Mr. Crow was married to Nancy 
W. Whitaker — a daughter of Josiah Whitaker — a 
lady well qualified for the responsible position she 
was called to occupy. 

His appointment for the following year was to 
the Hinckstone Circuit, with Hiram Baker. Mil- 
lersburg, with fourteen other appointments, consti- 
tuted the field of his operations. In this charge 
thirty-six persons joined the Church. At the close 
of this year he located, that he might provide a 
home for his family. 

During the five years that Mr. Crow had traveled 
he had received three hundred and fifty-eight mem- 
bers into the Church, and was paid for his services 
two hundred and forty -nine dollars. 

After sustaining the relation of a local preacher to 
the Church for two years, in which he was laborious 
and useful, he returned to the Conference, and was 
appointed to the Burlington Circuit, where he re- 



*When the author, ten years later, traveled Manchester 
Mission, which was a portion of the old Cumberland Circuit, 
he frequently heard pleasant allusions to the appointment of 
Messrs. Crow, Martin, and Bird — all the feathered tribe of the 
Conference — to the Goose Creek Circuit. 



Western Cavaliers. 



231 



mained for two years. Although, he had labored 
with rare diligence during the five years which he 
spent as an itinerant, yet he returned to the duties 
of the pastorate with even a stronger purpose of ac- 
complishing good. In the pulpit, in the altar, and 
in his pastoral visits, he recommended the religion 
he professed. 

We next follow him to the Mount Sterling Cir- 
cuit, with Wilson S. McMurray as his colleague, 
and thence to the Falmouth Circuit. 

In 1836, with William B. L an drum, he traveled 
the Georgetown Circuit, and in 1837 his appoint- 
ment is the Burlington Circuit, with Thomas B. 
Malone as his colleague. In these several charges 
the ministry of Mr. Crow was greatly blessed. On 
the Burlington Circuit, which he traveled for two 
years, two hundred and forty-one persons were added 
to the Church; on the Mount Sterling, thirty; on the 
Falmouth, forty; on the Georgetown, fifteen; and 
on the Burlington, where we find him this year, one 
hundred and twenty-three. He received for his sup- 
port during these seven years one thousand and eleven 
dollars. ISo man in the Conference at this period 
served the Church more faithfully than did James C. 
Crow, and but few, if any, received a more meager 
support. His circuits were large, and frequently in 
the most rugged portions of the State, and in most 
instances made no provision whatever for the sup- 
port of his family; and yet not a murmur fell from 
his lips. Almost a stranger at home, he prosecuted 
with fidelity the duties assigned him, and every- 
where he labored gathered sheaves for his Master. 



232 



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iNot with enticing words of man's wisdom, but with 
great plainness of speech, he told the simple story 
of the cross, and sinners gathered to its standard. 
With the small support he received he managed to 
avoid pecuniary embarrassment, and met his finan- 
cial obligations with commendable promptness. 

The total increase in the Lexington District was 
three hundred and eighty white and two hundred, and, 
eighty-eight colored members. 

Thomas W. Chandler was the Presiding Elder in 
the Augusta District. All over this vast field the 
fires of religion burned brightly on the altars of the 
Church. Scarcely a community could be found on 
which the showers of grace refused to fall. Every- 
where sinners were sending their plaintive cries to 
Heaven for mercy, and everywhere shouts of con- 
verted souls filled the air. 

In the Fleming Circuit — whose preacher was the 
zealous and indefatigable G-eorge W. Merritt — be- 
fore the winter passed, some prosperity was enjoyed. 
By the first of March signs of a general revival 
were very apparent. Throughout the work an in- 
terest on the subject of religion was awakened, and 
in midsummer the good effects were manifest in 
every direction. In July one hundred persons were 
reported as having been added to the Church.* 

In the village of Augusta — one of the principal 
appointments in the Minerva Circuit — at a quar- 
terly-meeting held in March, thirty -six persons 
joined the Church, and fully that number "passed 
from death unto life." The preachers on the circuit 
* Western Christian Advocate, July 26, 1838. 



Western Cavaliers. 



233 



were Samuel Veach and Foster H. Blades. At the 
meeting in Augusta, Messrs. Bascom, Tomlinson, 
Trimble, and McCown, composing the Faculty in 
the College, preached and labored in the altar. 

In Maysville, where Thomas N". Ralston was sta- 
tioned, at a meeting which closed about the first of 
June, sixty-two persons, several of whom were heads 
of families, professed religion and joined the Church ; 
while in the Germantown Circuit, under the ministry 
of Hiram Baker and Thomas Demoss, two hundred 
and fourteen persons witnessed a good confession 
and identified themselves with the people of God. 

In the Millersburg Circuit, the labors of Carlisle 
Babbitt were crowned with success. The second 
quarterly-meeting, which was held in Millersburg, 
resulted in forty additions to the Church. 

In the Greenupsburg Circuit, under the ministry 
of John Waring and Jedidiah Foster, the Church 
enjoyed seasons of refreshing. At Mount Zion, in 
that circuit, at a meeting held in April, twenty-three 
persons were added to the Church, and in the circuit 
during the year three hundred and eighty-four names 
were recorded. 

Wesley G. Montgomery — a young man who had 
just entered the Conference — traveled the Little 
Sandy Circuit, where his ministry was owned by the 
Head of the Church. More than one hundred per- 
sons became disciples of Jesus Christ before the 
spring months passed away. 

In the Augusta District, the net increase was six 
hundred and sixty-nine in the white membership, and 
one hundred and seventy-nine in the colored. 



234 



Western Cavaliers. 



From the Augusta District we turn to the Har- 
rodsburg; and although we do not meet with the 
success with which we have been cheered in the 
former, vet throughout the District we are per- 
mitted to witness gracious outpourings of the Holy 
Spirit. 

Absalom Woolliscroft and G-eorge S. Gatewood 
had traveled the Madison Circuit the previous year, 
and had rejoiced in the full reward of their effective 
labors. At the Conference of 1837 they were reap- 
pointed to this charge, and they entered upon their 
work with the same zeal that had distinguished 
their ministry the year before. Hardly had they 
set about the active duties of the campaign, when 
indications of a more extensive revival than they 
had hitherto witnessed appeared in the horizon. 
Congregations increased, the prayer and class-meet- 
ings were more largely attended, and the subject of 
religion occupied the popular thought. The good 
seed which was then sown was carefully watched. 
Extraordinary efforts were made to push the battle 
to the gates of the enemy. In January they re- 
ported five hundred souls converted to God,* and 
the work still progressing in every direction. John 
James, the Presiding Elder, about the last of March 
reports that "in every place there is a regular in- 
crease. In Harrodsburg and Danville Station many 
have been added to the Church. Danville and Win- 
chester Circuits have been greatly blessed, and all 
around the District there is in progress a most glo- 
rious revival." Mr. Maffltt had again visited Har- 
* Western Christian Advocate, January 26, 1838. 



Western Cavaliers. 235 



rodsburg, and was instrumental in turning many 
to Grod. On the 22d of June Edward Stevenson 
reports "good meetings in both places/' and at the 
third quarterly-meeting, held late in J uly, in Har- 
rodsburg, seven persons became members of the 
Church. 

In the Somerset Circuit, Albert Kelly received 
into the Church more than one hundred persons. 

The preachers in all parts of this District labored 
with unwonted zeal; but none of them displayed 
greater energy in their work than did ISTapoleon B. 
Lewis and William McD. Abbett. Mr. Lewis had 
entered the Conference in 1834, but had traveled 
one year earlier under the Presiding Elder. Al- 
though a young man, as a preacher of a high order 
of talent and as a zealous and successful evangelist, 
he had taken rank with the first men of his age in 
the Conference, and promised great usefulness to 
the Church. His colleague, Mr. Abbett, although 
in the noon-tide of life, had just entered the field. 
His preaching abilities were far above mediocrity, 
and his devotion to the Church was marked by cor- 
responding efforts to advance the cause of the Re- 
deemer. Many preachers are largely indebted to 
their wives for their success in the ministry, and no 
one was more obligated in this respect than Mr. 
Abbett. His timidity and modesty operated against 
him. On his pulpit ability he placed a much lower 
estimate than did the people he served, and fre- 
quently before preaching he alluded to his inade- 
quacy to the work he was called to perform. He 
had preached on Sunday evening, in the village of 



236 



Western Cavaliers. 



Stanford, to a large and attentive audience, and had 
made one of his happiest efforts. The night was 
dark, so that in returning from the church no one 
could be distinguished. The voice of a young man 
was recognized by a comrade on the opposite side 
of the street, when he cried to him, "Did you hear 

what 'Squire P said about the new preacher?" 

" No. What was it? " The reply was, " He said that 
fellow should not practice on him again," and a 
merry laugh rang out on the evening air. The 
preacher himself was too near not to hear the jest. 
Discouraged and depressed, he, however, prosecuted 
his work, meeting his appointments and faithfully 
delivering his message. 

Spring came. The winter through which he had 
passed was the coldest that had been known for sev- 
eral years, and only a meager support had been re- 
ceived. Under pecuniary embarrassment, and with 
the impression that the work of the ministry could 
be better performed by some one else, Mr. Abbett 
resolved to abandon the itinerancy. He returned 
home, expecting to retire from a field which he be- 
lieved himself called to occupy, and to spend the 
remainder of his life in a local sphere. He commu- 
nicated this fact to the Presiding Elder, who used 
every argument to dissuade him from the purpose he 
had formed, urging upon him an immediate return 
to a work where he was so much beloved. The 
weeks he spent at home were weeks of inexpressible 
sadness. He could neither eat, nor sleep, nor work. 
Sympathy, tears, prayers, all failed to give him the 
comfort he so ardently desired. 



Western Cavaliers. 



237 



"Words of cheer, however, fell from the lips of his 
faithful wife, as she wept and prayed with him, and 
pleaded with him to return to the post he had aban- 
doned. Unable to resist her earnest appeals, he 
yielded to her persuasions, and, returning to his cir- 
cuit, with energy and zeal pleaded his Masters cause. 
A few weeks later Mrs. Abbett made a round or 
more on the circuit with her husband, holding up 
his hands in the noble work to which he had pledged 
anew his energies and his life. In every neighbor- 
hood she visited she made friends for herself, for her 
husband, and for the cause of Christ, which she so 
dearly loved. The ministry of Messrs. Lewis and 
Abbett was greatly blessed in the awakening of sin- 
ners and the conversion of penitents. Many were 
added to the Church. 

Notwithstanding the revivals all over this Dis- 
trict, the net increase was only thirty-four white and 
one hundred and twenty colored members. 

In the Hopkinsville District, the reports were 
more encouraging. As early as January George 
Switzer reported an extraordinary revival in the 
town of Franklin, and, indeed, revivals everywhere 
within the bounds of the Bowling Green Circuit, of 
which he had charge. On the 26th of the same 
month Wiley B. Murphy, the junior preacher, held 
a meeting, at which twenty persons were added to 
the Church. Robert Y. McReynolds, the preacher 
on the Franklin Circuit, held a meeting early in 
March, when twenty-seven persons turned to the 
Lord. In the Hopkinsville Circuit, Gilby Kelly and 
Andrew J. McLaughlin were notably successful. 



238 



Western Cavaliers. 



Revivals in Hopkins ville, Providence, and other 
parts, signalized their labors. Two hundred persons 
joined the Church, seventy-two of whom were re- 
ceived by the junior preacher after Mr. Kelly left 
for Conference. In the Princeton Circuit, John 
Nevius announced large accessions in Jnly, and later 
that one hundred and eighteen had been added to 
the Church; while in the Greenville Circuit a " good 
work " was reported. The membership in the Mad- 
isonville Circuit, under the ministry of Robert G. 
Gardner and William James, was largely increased, 
and revivals blessed the Church in every portion of 
the District. 

Among the young men in the Conference who 
displayed extraordinary zeal, Edwin Roberts was 
one of the most conspicuous. His appointment was 
to the Morganfield Circuit. He had entered the 
Conference the year before, and had been useful as 
junior preacher on the Hopkinsville Circuit. He 
was sent to Morganfield Circuit alone, and his en- 
trance on his work was unheralded. His dress was 
plain: he wore a broad -brimmed white hat, and 
none of his apparel was of the costly kind; his face, 
however, was commanding, and his bearing that of 
a gentleman. 

It was early in November when he reached his 
field of labor. He had traveled all day, meditating 
on the responsibility of the w r ork to which he had 
been divinely called. The shades of night were fast 
gathering around him when he rode up to the gate 
in front of an elegant farm-house, where one of his 
official members resided. As he hailed, the lady of 



Western Cavaliers. 



239 



the house appeared at the front door. Mr. Roberts 
inquired for her husband. 

"He is not at home/' replied the lady; "do you 
wish to see him? " 

"I do, madam," said the young preacher. 

"With that courtesy and hospitality for which the 
women of Kentucky are so proverbial, she invited 
him to alight from his *horse and walk into the 
house, adding: "My husband is somewhere about 
the farm, and will be here soon." 

Dismounting, and fastening his jaded horse to the 
rack, and throwing his well-worn and scantily-filled 
saddle-bags over his arm, the well-formed and fine- 
looking stripling entered the yard, and with wearied 
step approached the dwelling, conscious that he was 
the object of mingled curiosity and suspicion. On 
reaching the door he offered the lady his hand, with 
the remark: 

" My name is Roberts. I am the new T preacher for 
the circuit." 

A clap of thunder from a clear sky would have 
produced no more surprise than did this announce- 
ment. 

"You our new preacher!" exclaimed the lady, 
with evident amazement. " You our new jireacher!" 
she repeated, with emphasis. "Why, young man, 
you must be mistaken. The Bishop usually sends 
us — " and here she paused, and added: "You can- 
not be our new preacher." 

During this interview, which w^as brief, the young 
preacher stood at the door, the lady, in her surprise, 
having forgotten to invite him into the house. Re- 



240 



We stern Cavaliers. 



fleeting a moment, she said: "Well, come in; my 
husband will return shortly, and he will see about 
this matter/' 

Entering the house, he was invited into a richly- 
furnished parlor, where he was left to his own re- 
flections, and to contemplate the prospects before 
him in this new appointment. What those reflec- 
tions must have been in the mind of a young and 
sensitive preacher — who had just left an affectionate 
home, with the kiss of mother and sisters imprinted 
on his cheek, and the "God bless you" of friends 
and loved ones, to enter with fear and trembling 
upon the responsibilities and trials of the itinerant 
ministry, for the duties of which he keenly felt his 
inadequacy — can only be imagined by those who 
have passed through the same ordeal, or whose ob- 
servation has made them acquainted with the trials 
which beset a young preacher of tender sensibilities. 

Anxious to know how he would be received by 
the gentleman, the "new preacher" awaited his ar- 
rival w T ith emotions he could not describe. He did 
not wait long. In a few minutes he entered the 
house, accompanied his wife into the parlor, and 
was introduced to Edwin Roberts. 

"Are you our preacher?" he asked, with apparent 
sternness. 

"My name is Edwin Roberts. Bishop Roberts 
has sent me to the Morganfield Circuit for the pres- 
ent year, to preach to the people. I have been di- 
rected to your house as being one of the preachers' 
homes, and as convenient to my appointment on 
to-morrow." 



Western Cavaliers. 241 



While Mr. Roberts was making this plain state- 
ment the gentleman observed him closely, and, fail- 
ing to be impressed by what he had said, expressed 
a doubt as to whether the young man had been ap- 
pointed to the Morganfield Circuit. His doubts, 
however, were removed when Mr. Roberts, handing 
him a letter, said : 

" Perhaps this letter may satisfy you; it is from 
Brother Corwine, my Presiding Elder. I left him 
a few days since. Before doing so, he gave me this, 
and requested me to call at your house on reaching 
the circuit, and assured me that in you I would find 
a friend and a brother." 

"Feel perfectly at home, Brother Roberts," said 
the gentleman; "you shall find in me all that 
Brother Corwine promised you;" and then, excusing 
himself, he left the room. 

The stranger's horse, which had been standing at 
the rack, was sent to the stable and properly cared 
for, and in a short time tea was announced; after- 
ward family prayers were held, and then the com- 
pany remained in the parlor until bed-time, spending 
the hours in pleasant and profitable conversation. 

A history of the life of the young preacher was 
elicited by the family; the struggles through which 
he passed in entering the ministry were touchingly 
delineated, and anxiety expressed for success in the 
charge to which he was appointed. 

The prejudices of the family had measurably 
yielded before the force of the devoted piety and 
sterling good sense so manifestly possessed by the 
guest. Nevertheless, there lingered a sense of in- 
11 



242 



Western Cavaliers. 



jury to the circuit on the part of the Bishop, in 
sending to so important a charge a young and inex- 
perienced man, who must be wholly inadequate to 
the necessities of the work. 

After family prayers and breakfast, on the follow- 
ing morning, the young preacher retired to the 
woods for meditation and private prayer, but re- 
turned to the house in time to start to the church, 
wdiich was not far distant. On approaching the 
church he found a large audience assembled, most 
of whom had stopped outside the house, awaiting 
the arrival of the preacher. He passed through the 
crowd, submitting to their curious gaze and their 
ill-suppressed wonder. He walked to the pulpit, 
and, kneeling down, earnestly invoked aid from the 
gread Head of the Church. Rising from his knees, 
he at once addressed himself to the work he had 
been sent to do. Among the last who came in were 
the brother and sister who had entertained him the 
previous night. 

As he opened the service he could distinctly read 
upon the countenances of the people who sat before 
him the mingled emotions which were influencing 
them. Many had come to see and hear the new 
preacher, and to take account of his ability, and to 
compare him with his predecessor. " Who is he?" 
could not be answered, for nobody seemed to know 
him. "He does not look like he can preach; and, 
withal, he is so young." 

But stop ! He has read the opening hymn, and 
read it well ; he leads the singing with a clear, mu- 
sical voice; and his prayer has made its way to every 



Western Cavaliers. 



243 



willing heart, as, deep-toned, fervent, spiritual, it 
uprises to the mercy-seat, with its language of 
thanksgiving, and confession, and supplication for 
blessings large and full upon the congregation, the 
circuit, the labors of the newly-appointed pastor. 
Another of the songs of Zion, with a rich, beautiful 
chorus, has been sung, seemingly inviting and com- 
pelling all present to join in it. The text has been 
announced; the preacher is discussing his subject; 
he rises with his theme ; 9 an unction rests upon the 
pulpit, and reaches to the pew; a shout rolls over 
the assembly, and the old, the middle-aged, and the 
young are charmed and captivated. 

To follow Edwin Roberts during the year, on the 
Morganfielcl Circuit, would afford real pleasure; to 
listen to him as the people are convinced by the 
force of his eloquent logic, or as he thunders upon 
them in his overpowering exhortations, or as he 
melts them with his pathos, or attracts them heaven- 
ward by the luster of his consistent piety — all ac- 
companied by the demonstration and power of the 
Holy Spirit — would be a happiness, indeed. Every- 
body in the circuit loved Edwin Roberts. His 
ministry during the year was abundantly favored — 
nearly one hundred persons being converted. 

The net increase in the Hopkinsville District was 
seven hundred and eighty-eight in the white member- 
ship, and two hundred and six in the colored. 

The G-reensburg District was the scene of many a 
hard conflict and of many a glorious triumph, this 
year. In this District, the Elizabeth Circuit — with 
Joseph D. Barnett, who had traveled it the previous 



244 



Western Cavaliers. 



year, and William D. Matting, as tlie preachers — 
sounds the initial note of triumph. The first quar- 
terly-meeting was held in Elizabethtown, early in 
March, at which fifteen persons were added to the 
Church, and all along the year revivals crowned the 
labors of the preachers. In the Columbia Circuit, 
early in April, Elijah M. Bosley reported fifty addi- 
tions. In the Greensburg Station, under the pas- 
toral charge of George W. Taylor, the membership 
was quadrupled. In the Glasgow Circuit, James 
Xing and Alanson C. Dewitt had refreshing times. 
In the Bardstown Station, Hubbard H. Kavanaugh 
was eminently successful; while in the Salt Eiver 
Circuit, William M. Grubbs and Jesse P. Murrell 
were instrumental in brin^ino; manv souls to Christ. 
The Lebanon Circuit, to which Matthew X. Lasiey 
had been returned, continued to prosper under his 
faithful ministry : while at Burksville, Eobinson E. 
Sidebottom and John C. C. Thompson gained many 
stars to deck the crown of their rejoicing. Ed- 
mund M. Johnson, the leader on the Litchfield Mis- 
sion, saw the pleasure of the Lord prospering in his 
hands. 

The net increase in the Greensburg District was 
three hundred and seventy-one white and seventy-seven 
colored members. 

In the Barboursville District, the zealous and un- 
tiring Bichard D. Xeale was the leader. This Dis- 
trict embraced six charges, and spread over the most 
rugged section of Kentucky, including the south- 
eastern part of the State. The country was not 
only rough and mountainous, but sparsely settled. 



Western Cavaliers. 245 



Mr. JSTeale was a model man. He was just fifty 
years old, having been born in 1787. He was well 
formed for endurance, and possessed a fine constitu- 
tion, while his snow-white hair hung loosely to his 
shoulders. "With a countenance full of benignity, 
and a heart full of love for the cause of the Master, 
and with a burning zeal for the salvation of souls, he 
entered upon his work immediately after the Con- 
ference closed. His energy, which nothing could 
dampen, inspired the preachers of his District, and 
urged them on to the performance of duty. 

William B. Landrum was sent to the Prestonsburg 
Circuit. On the last night of 1837 he commenced 
a meeting in Prestonsburg, at which two persons 
were converted. Encouraged by this success, he 
prosecuted his labors all around the circuit, until in 
every neighborhood the work of the Lord was re- 
vived. 

On the Mount Pleasant Mission, the ministry of 
William M. Crawford was rich in blessing: nearly 
one hundred persons were added to the Church. 
Andrew Peace, on the Barboursville Mission, re- 
ceived into the Church about seventy members. 

Albert H. Bedford was the youngest preacher in 
the Barboursville District — indeed, the youngest in 
the Conference. He was appointed to the Man- 
chester Mission. His field of labor included seven- 
teen appointments, to be filled in three weeks, and 
extended from London, by the way of Manchester, 
to the North Fork of the Kentucky River. In en- 
tering upon his work the people received him 
kindly, though evidently with feelings of disap- 



246 



We s teen Cavaliers. 



pointment. On his first round he rode up to the 
house of a brother where preaching was expected 
that day. When he introduced himself as the new 
preacher, the old brother looked at him for a mo- 
ment, and then said: " Well, jump down, my little 
sonny, and run into the house. " The year he passed 
in this mission was a pleasant one, and the kindness 
of the people is still fondly remembered. His min- 
istry met with but little success : only fifteen persons 
were added to the Church during the year. 

The net increase in the Barboursville District was 
one hundred and forty-two white and forty colored 
members. 

The winter months of the year had passed, but 
winter itself was tardy in yielding to gentle spring. 
At this time a young preacher was returning from a 
mountain mission, to visit his relations in Central 
Kentucky. He was riding a sorrel horse, and be- 
tween the two there was a strong attachment; for 
together they had often endured hardships, and 
crossed deep and turbid streams. The rider was 
plainly dressed. A white blanket overcoat, which 
had been his only covering on many a cold and 
stormy night, was thrown around him, and there 
was nothing in his appearance to prepossess a 
stranger in his favor. He had just passed Mount 
Vernon, and was jogging along, slowly and alone, 
when he heard the sound of a horse's feet behind 
him. A stranger, riding at full speed, was overtak- 
ing him, and soon they were side by side. 

The stranger was a young man, not older than 
the preacher, and neither had attained his majority. 



Western Cavaliers. 



247 



He was elegantly dressed: his coat was of the finest 
texture and latest style; his vest was silk velvet, 
and his pantaloons the smoothest doeskin; his hat 
was silk, contrasting well with the white fur hat of 
the young preacher, and his polished boots covered 
a delicate foot; around his neck hung a gold chain, 
to which his watch was attached, and his horse — an 
elegant animal — was beautifully equipped. 

"How are you, my boy?" was his salutation to 
the young preacher. 

••Sorter middling" was the reply. 

"Well, my boy. where do you live? 77 he inquired. 

"In New Kaintuck" (for so the mountain region 
was called), the young preacher answered. 

-What is your name? 7 ' was the next question. 

"Fred Brenning, sir; and what mout be your 
name? ef I mout be so bold as to ax, 77 rejoined the 
preacher. 

«Mr. L . 77 

"Mity funny name, Mister. Do n't you think it 
is? 77 

"I don't know; but now, Fred, tell me where 
you are going.* 7 

"I 'm gwine to the settlements of Old Kaintuck." 
-Will you not get lost? 77 

"I reckon not," said the preacher. "The big 
road I "m in goes there, and 1 7 11 jest foller it/ 7 

- But sometimes the road forks. How would you 
know which way to go? 77 

-Forks! What's that? 77 

-A road forks when another road shoots oft* from 
the main road, thus 77 — and he held up his hands so 



248 



Western Cavaliers. 



as to explain what he meant by the forks of a 
roacl. 

" Yes, I see," said the preacher. 

" AY ell, what will you do when you come to where 
the road forks?" 

" You know, a piece of plank is nailed to a tree, 
pointing the way; well, I'll go the way the plank 
p'ints." 

"But if there are two pieces of plank, pointing in 
different directions, how, then, do you do?" 
"I axes at the blacksmith-shop." 
"Can you spell, Fred?" 
"Spell? I guess I can." 
"Spell ' crucifix/" 
" K-r-u-s-e-fe-i-k-s." 

"That's right!" and he slapped the preacher on 
the shoulder. " You are a smart boy — " 

"That's jest what dad allers sed; he sed I was 
smarter 'n enny on his children." 

"Are there any other children besides you, Fred ? " 

"Enny besides me! I'd say there is — lots of 'em — 
three gals and five boys. Dad says I'm smarter 'n 
enny on 'em." 

" I have no doubt that you are the smartest." 

"Mr. L , I'd like to ax you a question." 

"What is it?" 

" Can you spell?" 

" yes, I am a linguist." 

"Spell 'baker,' 4 brier,' 6 cider,' ' crazy,' 6 cruel.'" 
He spelled each word correctly, as requested. 

" Can you read, Mr. L ?" 

" certainly. I said I am a linguist:' 



Western Cavaliers. 249 



" Have you ever ben clean through the spellin'- 
book?" 

" To be sure I have." 

" You 've ben to the picturs, then ? " 

"Yes." 

"Well, now, tell me, wasn't you sorry for that 
little feller that was stealin' apples ; you know the old 
feller tried to skeer him with grass, but he could n't 
come it; but when he picked up the dorniks he 
fotched him down — did n't he, Mr. L ?" 

"Yes.". 

" Then, you know about that gal what was car- 
ryin' a ceder-pail of milk on her head, and was gwine 
to buy her a green gown, and the pail fell and spilt 
the milk — was n't you sorry for her, Mr. L ? " 

"The most latent sympathies of my heart have 
always been awakened in her behalf." 

" Mr. L , you said awhile ago you was a thing 

— what was it? " 

" I do not know to what you refer. What do you 
mean?" 

" The thing you sed you was, twice." 

" I have no idea to what you allude, Fred. yes, 
now I know' — a linguist." 

"Yes, yes, a linguist. Now, tell me, who is he?" 

"A Latin and Greek scholar." 

" my ! Say some Latin for me." 

" 'Deus creavit coelum et terram intra sex dies. Primo 
die fecit firmamentum/ " 

"Can't I say that?" 

"I reckon not; none but educated gentlemen can 
do so." 

11* 



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" "Well, I 'm edicated. Dad allers sed I had better 
book larnin' 'an enny of his children." 

"If you think you can repeat what I have said, 
suppose you try it " — Mr. L repeating it himself. 

"'Deus coravit selorum terrorum sexes dise. 
Pernio fermentum.' " 

"Pretty well done, Fred. Try it again." 

Again and again the trial was made, but with only 
the same success. 

" Won't you say that other feller what you was ? " 
asked the preacher. 

" What do you mean?" 

"You called him Greek." 

" yes. 'Apodos katarate ta porthmia. Boa ei 
touto soi edion, Charon.' " 

"Who ever heerecl the like? You must have 
mity good book larnin'." 

"Yes, Fred, I am well educated." 

"I'd like to ax you where you live, ef you 
would n't mind tellin'." 

"My home is in Garrard county, in this State. 
It is one of the richest and best counties. ■ My father 
is a gentleman of wealth, and my family one of the 
most influential." 

"I reckoned that," said the preacher, "ef I know 
the meanin' of your big words. When will you get 
home?" 

" This evening, about dark." 

" Then, I '11 go home with you, and stay all night." 

" No, no, you can't; there will be no place for you 
to sleep." 

" I can sleep with you." 



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"Not so; my brother and I sleep together." 

"Well, I can sleep in the middle." 

The young gentleman peremptorily declined to 
take the uncouth and green mountain youth home 
with him, but scarcely knew how to get rid of him. 
They rode some distance without speaking, when 
the preacher said: 

"How would you like to trade your overcoat for 
mine ? " 

"What boot will you give me?" 
"A quarter of a dollar." 

" We can't trade. My overcoat is a fine one, and 
cost ten times as much as yours." 

"Mine is the warmest," answered the preacher. 

In the midst of this pleasant conversation a rock- 
away appeared in front of them, in which- sat a 
solitary traveler. As the distance between him and 
them was shortened, he was recognized by the 
preacher. It was Napoleon B. Lewis, who in turn 
discovered in one of the horsemen his young friend, 
Brenning. 

"How are you, Brother Brenning?" 

"How are you, Brother Lewis?" 

"Now, tell me," said Mr. Lewis, "how you are 
getting along in your mission-field. How do you 
like the mountains? How are my friends in that 

country? How is Col. L * and family? and 

where are you going ? " 

*Col. L , to whom he alluded, was a prominent politi- 
cian in the mountains. He was a special friend of Mr. Lewis, 
and had shown him great kindness. He was also a friend of 
the young preacher. 



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Before answering these questions Mr. L was 

introduced to Mr. Lewis by young Brenning as the 
nephew of the gentleman about whom and family 
such special inquiry had been made. 

The questions were then answered as rapidly as 
possible, when the friends separated. 

The two young men resumed their journey; but 
more than a mile was traveled before a word was 
spoken by either of them. The silence, which had 
become quite painful, was at length broken bv Mr. 
L : 

'•Did I understand from Mr. Lewis that you are a 
Methodist preacher and a missionary in the mount- 
ain region of the State?" 

"I am a Methodist preacher and a missionary in 
the mountain region of the State." 

"I think. Mr. Brenning. that you have treated 
me very unkindly in not telling me who you were 
when I first came up with you. It would have saved 
me from the mortification that I now must neces- 
sarily endure. I mistook you for a green mountain 
youth, and concluded that I would have some fun at 
your expense." 

-And I took you for a pert young man." replied 
the preacher, " whose eye-teeth had not been cut, 
and I deemed it a kindness to cut them. I thought, 
too, there might be some fun, but not at my expense. 
Besides, your honored uncle, in the mountains, has 
shown me much kindness, and I knew of no other 
way of paying the debt of gratitude I owe him than 
by teaching his nephew a lesson that would not be 
easily forgotten." 



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"I would be glad for you to go home with me, 
and stay all night, Mr. Brenning." 

" There is no place for me to sleep." 

" You can sleep with me." 

"I thought your brother sleeps with you." 

"Ay, but you can sleep in the middle." 

The preacher thanked him for the invitation, but 
declined going, as it would take him several miles 
out of his way. They were now within a short dis- 
tance of the Crab Orchard, where they were to 
separate. 

" My young friend," said Brenning, "we have 
been incidentally thrown together. We are both in 
the rosy morn of life, and many years may lie be- 
tween us and the grave, or we may die early. The 
first step that a young man takes in life should be a 
step toward the cross. What preparation have you 
made for the hereafter?" 

"None whatever," w r as the reply. "I believe in 
the truth of the Christian religion, and certainly in- 
tend to be a Christian; but I am young, and the 
world offers me many inducements to pursue its 
pleasures for awhile. At some future time I will 
turn my thoughts to this subject, and become a fol- 
lower of Christ." 

" So thought Felix, when he trembled under the 
preaching of an apostle, and answered, ' Go thy way 
for this time; when I have a convenient season, I 
will call for thee/ The convenient season, so far as 
we know, never came. You have no future time; 
the present alone is yours. You may improve the 
time you have, or, if unimproved, there may be to 



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you no future when you may turn to God. Our 
Heavenly Father says, 'My son, give me thine heart/ 
and 'Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his 
righteousness.' Seek God, give him your heart, 
and in his service you will find joys that will never 
fade, exceeding far all that the world, with its 
myriad fleeting pleasures, can offer you. 75 

The young stranger made no reply. Tears stole 
gently down his fair face, and his lips quivered with 
emotion. 

"Will you be a Christian ?" continued Brenning. 
"Without religion there is no true happiness in this 
life, no solace in a dying-hour, and no felicity beyond 
the grave. Will you be a Christian?" he repeated, 
with emphasis. " Jesus died to save you. Will you 
not love him ? " 

The young man took the preacher's hand, and 
said : 

" Mr. Brenning, I am glad that I met with you, and 
thank you most sincerely for your good advice. I 
will try and do as you have requested. I am satis- 
fied that there is no other path to happiness but 
the one you admonish me to pursue. Yours is the 
better life. Will you pray for me?" 

As he uttered these words the 'tears flowed more 
freely down his face. The young travelers then 
bade each other farewell. Perhaps good seed were 
sown. 

While Methodism was enjoying such splendid 
triumphs in the Kentucky Conference, there was in 
that portion of the State lying in Jackson's Pur- 
chase a decrease of sixty white and four colored 



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255 



members. The Wadesboro Circuit, under the min- 
istry of Johnson Lewis, shows a small increase, but 
in the Hickman and Paducah Circuits a falling off is 
reported. 

The increase in the Kentucky Conference was two 
thousand eight hundred and seventy-four white and 
one thousand and eighty-four colored members. After 
deducting the decrease in Jackson's Purchase, it 
leaves a net increase of two thousand eight hundred 
and fourteen white and one thousand and seventy-nine 
colored members. 



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CHAPTER VII. 

FEOM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1838 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1839. 

Now, then, the ceaseless shower 

Of gospel blessings send, 
And let the soul-converting power 

Thy ministers attend. 
On multitudes confer 

The heart-renewing love, 
And by the joy of grace prepare 

For fuller joys above. 

THE session of the Kentucky Conference of 1838 
met in Danville, October 17. Bishops Waugh 
and Morris were both present. 

Bishop Waugh opened the Conference by reading 
a portion of God's word. Singing and prayer fol- 
lowed, after which the Bishop addressed the Confer- 
ence in reference to the work in which they were 
engaged. 

Beverly Waugh was born in Fairfax county, Vir- 
ginia, October 25, 1789. When fifteen years of age 
he became a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, and was converted about the same time. 
The impression that it was his duty to preach the 
gospel of Christ was strong and abiding, and in 1809 



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he entered the Baltimore Conference, under the 
conviction that if he pursued any other calling the 
salvation of his soul would be imperiled. 

His first appointment was to the Stafford and 
Fredericksburg Circuit, lying in his native State, as 
junior preacher. In 1810 he was placed in charge 
of the Greenbrier Circuit. At the Conference of 

1811 he was stationed in Washington City, and in 

1812 he was appointed to Stephensburg. From 
Stephensburg we follow him to the city of Balti- 
more, and from thence to the Montgomery Circuit, 
where he labored for two years. In 1816 he trav- 
eled on the Berkeley Circuit. In 1817 we find him 
again in Washington City, and in 1818 in Baltimore. 
In 1819 and 1820 he had charge of Fell's Point, 
Baltimore, and in 1821 and 1822 of Georgetown, in 
the District of Columbia. Frederick, Maryland, was 
the field of his ministry in 1828 and 1824. At the 
Conference of 1825 he was returned to Baltimore 
City Mission, where he remained two years, and in 
1827 his appointment was East Baltimore. He was 
elected Assistant Book Agent in 1828, and in 1832 
the principal Book Agent. During the eight years 
of his agency his name appeared in the Minutes of 
the New York Conference, his election consituting 
him a member of that body, as the rule then was. 
In 1836 he was elected to the office of Bishop, to the 
duties of which he was well adapted. 

When Bishop Waugh visited Kentucky, in 1838, 
he was unknown to the members of the Conference, 
with the exception of those who had met him at the 
General Conference. His urbanity and his line social 



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qualities soon introduced him to the entire body, 
while his zeal and devotion to the cause of God en- 
deared him to every heart. He presided with ease 
and dignity. 

George McXelly was elected Secretary, and Isaac 
Collard Assistant Secretary. 

The Committee on Public Worship consisted of 
John James and Edward Stevenson. John Chris- 
tian Harrison, Henry N. Vandyke, and John Beatty, 
were appointed Stewards of the Conference. 

Committees were appointed as follows : William 
Gunn and Thomas Waring, on Memoirs; Henry E. 
Pilcher, Thomas N. Ralston, and William B. Lan- 
drum, on "the business of the Eastern Book Con- 
cern;" Richard Tydings, Edward Stevenson, and 
Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, on "the affairs of Augusta 
College;" Peter Taylor, William Holman, and 
Robert Y. McReynolds, on "necessitous cases;" and 
Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, Edward Stevenson, Rich- 
ard Tydings, William Holman, and George W. 
Taylor, to prepare " a pastoral address." 

Before the close of the morning session Bishop 
Morris was invited to take the chair. No Bishop in 
the Church was so well known in Kentucky as 
Thomas A. Morris. Several years of his ministry 
were passed in the State, where he labored with 
fidelity and success.* 

At the time Bishop Morris took the chair the 
Conference was engaged in the examination of the 
character of elders. The remainder of the morning 

* For a sketch of Bishop Morris, see " Methodism in Ken- 
tucky," vol. iii., pp. 136-141. 



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259 



session was occupied by this question and the adop- 
tion of a resolution, that " Friday, the 19th inst., be 
observed by the Conference as a day of fasting and 
prayer for the continued prosperity of the work of 
God within our bounds;" and "that the Christian 
community be invited to participate in this religious 
service." 

During the remainder of the session the two 
Bishops occupied the chair alternately. 

At the previous Conference Mr. Bascom was ap- 
pointed to preach, at this session, a sermon on the 
Ministry. Mr. Tomlinson, at the same time, was 
appointed to deliver an address on Education, and 
Mr. Stamper a sermon on Missions. 

Mr. Bascom was not present during the session of 
the Conference, and Mr. Kavanaugh was requested 
to preach the sermon on the Ministry. He, how^- 
ever, declined the honor, the allotted time being too 
short to enable him, in connection with other duties, 
to prepare the sermon. 

The address on Education was delivered on Sat- 
urday, October 20. It was a masterly effort. For 
more than an hour the distinguished speaker held 
an immense concourse in rapt silence by his graphic 
treatment of the inspiring theme. On the following 
Tuesday the Conference requested Mr. Tomlinson to 
furnish a copy of his address for publication in the 
Western Christian Advocate. 

The sermon on Missions, preached by Jonathan 
Stamper, was alike worthy of the preacher and the 
occasion. The revolt of the world from its rightful 
Sovereign, its redemption through the sufferings, 



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death, and mediation of Jesus Christ, its conversion 
to God. and the final salvation of the pure and holy 
in heaven, were the topics on which the preacher 
dwelt. 

God had created man holy. All the lineaments 
of his moral nature resembled those of his Creator. 
Pure, even as God is pure, he came forth from his 
hands, wearing his likeness and image. Placed in 
Eden, where every source of happiness was to be 
found, the expectation was a reasonable one that a 
corresponding obedience would mark his conduct. 
The insidious tempter invaded this pleasant retreat, 
and our globe became a prodigal in the family of 
worlds. Our progenitors lifted the arm of rebellion 
against Jehovah, and thus forfeited all claim to his 
favor, and all right to the paradise amid whose 
bowers they had found such delight. Eden had 
been the home of Adam: he had wandered along 
the banks of the river that watered its beautiful 
grounds: he had drunk from the purling streams 
that broke forth from granite lips; he had gathered 
from trees always pendent with delicious fruit; he 
had mingled with the inferior creation as their lord 
and sovereign; he had talked with angels, conversed 
with Jehovah, and reposed amid the shades of para- 
dise, beneath the deep blue sky, when the sheen of 
the silvery moon and the flickering lights of the 
starry hosts told of a brighter world; but now he 
must bid adieu to all these scenes of loveliness, and 
go out into a world made desolate by his transgres- 
sion. " Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from 
the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence 



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he was taken. So he drove out the man: and he placed 
at the east of the garden of Eden cherubims, and a 
flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the 
way of the tree of life." 

Hitherto man had shown no disposition to meas- 
ure arms with God; perhaps, until now he had not 
awakened to a consciousness of his true condition. 
God had, however, commanded him to leave Eden; 
and thoughts of its beautiful bowers, its shady 
groves, its crystal waters, its golden fruits, and, above 
all, the companionship of his Maker, rush upon his 
fevered brain, and he refuses to obey the command, 
and God drives him out. Perhaps, in the deep soli- 
tude into which he is driven he may find some relief 
from the bitter anguish which is crushing his guilty 
soul. Where shall he look for consolation? Will 
the serpent, whose persuasions had led to the fearful 
catastrophe, offer a solace? He no longer stands 
erect, nor speaks, as in the garden, but, crawling in 
the dust, responds in angry hisses, and spits his 
venom in the face of avenging Heaven. His wife — 
the woman whom God had given him — no more, 
with genial smile and confiding trust, leans on his 
stalwart arm and whispers words of cheer, but, 
doomed to sorrow, he sees written upon her once 
sweet face traces of grief and the curse of God. He 
turns to the animal creation, and they, no longer 
docile, with one accord attack him with savage 
cruelty, or flee from him as from a deadly foe. The 
earth on which he treads, just now so beautiful, is 
cursed, and thorns and thistles spring up in every 
direction. He thinks of the fruitage of Eden, that 



262 Western Cavaliers. 

so often had chased away hunger, and which had 
been procured without an effort; but now he must 
eat of the herb of the field, and earn his bread by 
the sweat of his brow. As he treads upon the dust 
the stern decree is ever before him : " Dust thou art, 
and unto dust shalt thou return." He looks above, 
and the heavens, once so bright, are clad with the 
garniture of death : from the horizon to the zenith 
black and angry clouds spread over all the sky, 
while forked lightnings flash and muttering thun- 
ders peal their deafening notes. But will not the 
grave terminate these sorrows? No; on him is the 
stamp of immortality, and he cannot be blotted from 
existence. He looks beyond, and no voice beckons 
him to the skies, but an eternal night, in realms of 
woe, awaits him. Is he the only sufferer? Looking 
down the stream of time, he beholds the unborn 
millions of his hapless progeny involved in the 
common ruin with himself. Eden is yet in sight, 
and angels, with folded wings, are hovering over it. 
Once more he turns toward its pleasant shades, and 
fain would reenter the gate through which he had 
been driven; but there stand sentinels — the cheru- 
bim and flaming sword, placed by God himself, 
whose authority he dares not defy. Despair settles 
upon his guilty heart as he turns away; for all seems 
lost. But, listen! The Trinity in council has as- 
sembled and resolved on the world's recovery to 
God. 

You would inquire into the cost of the world's 
redemption. We. reply: "For God so loved the 
world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that 



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whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but 
have everlasting life." The conception of the plan 
was the grandest that ever entered the Divine Mind. 
Its enunciation thrilled the heavenly legions with 
joy, and gladdened a world made desolate by sin. 

'T was great to speak a world from naught, 
'Twas greater to redeem. 

When announced in Eden, amid the ruins of the 
fall, that a redemptive scheme was provided for our 
race, man on earth and devils in hell were aston- 
ished; from lip to lip of the shining host, with elec- 
tric flash, the inquiry passed, How can God be 
propitiated? and angels damned reechoed through 
all the realms of night, How can God be propiti- 
ated? while, trembling and silent, our progenitors 
w T ere regaled with the breezes of mercy, as their 
whisperings were heard amid the bowers of para- 
dise. 

Would you learn the cost of the world's redemp- 
tion? See the types, and forms, and shadows, and 
sacrifices of the Old Testament economy; think of 
the immaculate Jesus — God's beloved Son — leaving 
the splendors of heaven, and coming down to earth 
to live, to suffer, and to die; think of Gethsemane — 
its tears, its groans, its agony; think of Calvary 
— its spotless Victim, his sufferings, and his death. 
For three dreadful hours anguish more intense than 
the universe had ever known is endured on the 
cross. The guilt and pollution of ages, past, present, 
and to come, are crushing his soul with all theii 
ponderous weight, " My God, my God, why hast 



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thou forsaken me? " falls with inexpressible sadness 
from his dying lips. God, was he not thy Son? 
and where are thy thunderbolts? Wilt thou not 
come to his rescue? His Father's face is hid. "He 
treads the wine-press alone, and of the people there 
were none with him." Jehovah's arm, though om- 
nipotent, must not interpose. Justice, stern and 
unpitying, with piercing eye and flaming tongue, de- 
mands the uttermost farthing. The celestial hosts 
stand aghast, angels droop their wings, and all the 
harps of heaven play mournful odes. The sun veils 
his face in the gloom of night, the earth trembles to 
its base, creation groans, and many of the graves 
around Jerusalem are unpeopled. see the suffer- 
ing Jesus! behold his pierced side, and on his drip- 
ping hands and on his bleeding heart read the cost 
of the world's redemption ! The atonement is made, 
and God is reconciled. "It is finished!" falls from 
his expiring lips, and reaches heaven. The arms of 
a Father's love encircle a despairing world; once 
more angels peal their notes of joy and sweep their 
harps of gold; for a wandering and lost star has 
been restored to its orbit, a fallen planet has been 
recovered, a world has been redeemed, and the 
gospel is to be preached to all the nations of the 
earth. 

But has the gospel succeeded in its mission? The 
progress of Christianity in the apostolic age of the 
Church excites our wonder and challenges our ad- 
miration. "Beginning at Jerusalem," as on the 
wings of the wind, the gospel spread in every direc- 



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tion. The persecution in which Stephen lost his 
life resulted in the dispersion of the followers of 
Christ, carrying with them in their exile lives pure 
and spotless, as well as the unadulterated doctrines 
of the word of God. Added to this, the apostles, 
with a zeal commensurate with the woes of man- 
kind, went everywhere, preaching the gospel of the 
kingdom. ISTot only were Judea, and Samaria, and 
Perea, and Galilee to listen to the story of the cross, 
but beyond the boundaries of Palestine the Church 
was commissioned to win trophies to the Redeemer. 
The cities and villages of the Holy Land heard the 
joyful sound, and all along the waters of the Medi- 
terranean, from Berytus to Anthedon, converts were 
made from Judaism to Christianity. Strangers in 
strange lands, we find the followers of Christ scat- 
tered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Bithynia, and Cap- 
padocia, embracing all the country between Mount 
Taurus and the Euxine Sea; while in the western 
part of Asia Minor, the cities of Laodicea, Philadel- 
phia, Ephesus, Sarclis, Smyrna, Thyatira, and Per- 
gamos, Churches were planted and prayers and 
praises offered to God. Passing into Greece, Cor- 
inth bows to the scepter of Christ; while on the 
rivulets of Ilissus and Cephisus, in its proud capital, 
on Mars' Hill, in the presence of the Areopagus, and 
in sight of the Parthenon, and surrounded by the 
temples of Theseus, and of Bacchus, and of Jupiter 
Olympus, and the temple of Victory, and the grotto 
of Apollo and Pan, and hard by the prison where 
Socrates had been confined, and from which he 
was led to his tragic fate — there Paul the apostle 
12 



266 



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proclaimed the gospel of Christ. Invading the 
Roman Empire, the apostles planted the standard 
of the cross on the banks of the Tiber, and found 
votaries to the Christian faith not only in the capi- 
tal of Italy, but in the imperial household. From 
Jerusalem round about to Illyricum, on the eastern 
coast of the Adriatic Gulf, St. Paul preached the 
gospel. It was carried to the Parthian Empire by 
Peter, to Arabia by Paul and Bartholomew, and by 
Thomas into India. The Evangelist Mark bore its 
truths into Alexandria, and from thence it was taken 
to Cyrene. Prom Rome it was carried to Carthage 
and to Proconsular Africa. It made its appearance 
in Gaul, in Germany, in Britain, and in Spain. 
Wherever it went pagan temples were closed, oracles 
w r ere struck dumb, idols were overthrown, and sin- 
ners recovered from the grasp of Satan, and placed 
as jewels in the crown of Christ. Like scattered 
lights along the sky, or like islands of beauty amid 
surrounding darkness, at this early period the influ- 
ence of Christianity was felt and its blessings dis- 
pensed throughout the civilized w^orld. 

Mr. Stamper traced the history of the Church — 
its conflicts and its triumphs in the Roman Empire 
— through the dark ages, until Wiclif appeared, 
" standing out in solitary grandeur — a lone star on 
the brow of a long and gloomy night." He told of 
Luther, and Melanchthon, and Zwingle, of the full- 
orbed splendor of the Reformation that set all Ger- 
many ablaze, and sent its brilliant light beyond the 
German Confederation; the decline of religion after 
the death of Luther; the great revival in England, 



We stern Cavaliers. 



267 



Ireland, and Wales, under the Wesleys and White- 
field, and the conquests of the Church in the Xew 
World. 

Contemplating the future of the Church, the 
preacher was full of hope. The Macedonian cry is 
heard from every direction, " Come over and help 
us ! " Almost every nation is opening wide its doors 
for the reception of the gospel. The enemies of the 
cross, it is true, are not asleep. Paganism, in giant 
proportions, in the presence of her temples and her 
gods, has renewed her oath of eternal enmity to 
Christ; infidelity, with brazen front, appears in the 
field of battle; ritualism and sacramentalism, wear- 
ing their masquerade, are anxious to revive their 
waning heritage; philosophy and vain deceit are 
arming for the struggle; and idolatrous worship 
everywhere is making bare its arm against the ad- 
vancing glories of the Church. Christianity, too, 
is awake. Fredi from conquered fields, and holding 
in its hands trophies gathered from every clime, 
with the memory of a thousand victories to inspire 
afresh its ardor, it enters upon the final contest. 
Under the command of Him who never lost a battle, 
before its moving columns the serried legions of 
sin are broken, and upon the ramparts of the enemy 
its ensign floats to the breeze. On, on, it presses, 
with unbroken front, bearing down every thing that 
opposes its march, its enemies bowing to its scepter, 
or following as captives its triumphal advance. Its 
success will be complete; nothing shall arrest its 
progress. 

The preacher then called upon the Conference 



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and the Church to bear their part in this glorious 
struggle; that God would not allow them to be in- 
active. The world's conversion will be effected, he 
said, whether we assist or not; the work will go on. 
Shall we stand with folded arms while others are 
pressing to the rescue? " Curse ye Meroz, curse ye 
bitterly the inhabitants thereof." For what ? What 
has Meroz done? " Because they came not to the 
help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the 
mighty." 

The Bishop appointed Mr. Bascom to preach on 
Education, at the ensuing Conference, Mr. Kava- 
naugh on the Ministry, and Mr. Stevenson on Mis- 
sions. 

Bishop Waugh laid before the Conference the 
following resolution from the New England Con- 
ference, which he prefaced by saying that he did 
not admit the authority of an Annual Conference 
to make him the bearer of any resolution which 
was, in his judgment, not only not promotive of 
the interests of the Church at large, but injurious 
to its union and prosperity; but that, in the present 
case, as a matter of courtesy, he would present the 
resolution, as requested by the New England Con- 
ference, especially as he understood that his col- 
leagues would pursue the same course. He also 
said that in principle and habit he was opposed to 
slavery, nor was he less decidedly and unequivocally 
opposed to Abolitionism. In submitting the reso- 
lution, he expressed the belief that its tendency was 
revolutionary and injurious: 

"Resolved, That the New England Annual Con- 



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269 



ference recommend to the next General Conference, 
to be holden in the city of Baltimore, May, 1840, to 
alter our general rule on the subject of slavery, so 
that it shall read as follows : ' The buying, or selling, 
or holding men, women, or children as slaves, under 
any circumstances, or giving them away, unless on 
purpose to free them/" 

The Conference unanimously disapproved of the 
resolution. 

The Bishop very plainly foresaw the evil tendency 
and disastrous results of the policy of Abolitionists; 
and hence, in submitting the resolution, he prop- 
erly and promptly rebuked the Xew England Con- 
ference. He not only thought that the prosperity 
of the Church would be retarded by the officious 
intermeddling of this Conference with an institu- 
tion for the existence of which J^Tew England, and 
not the South, was responsible, but he expressed 
the belief that the union of the Church would be 
imperiled. 

The institution of slavery, as it existed in the 
South-western and Southern States — the mildest 
form the world had ever known — had been recog- 
nized on the part of the Church in the North as well 
as in the South, not only by Conference resolutions, 
but by the enactments of the General Conference. 
The restless and incendiary spirit of Abolitionism 
• resolved that though the Church should be dismem- 
bered and broken into fragments, and the nation 
drenched in blood, it would persist in its policy so 
long as the institution existed. ISot only was the 
harmony of the Church in the slave-holding States 



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disturbed by those ecclesiastical agitators, but the 
quiet of some of the Northern Conferences was also 
greatly marred. 

A resolution was adopted, " approving of the 
publication, in connection with the Western Book 
Concern, of the Christian Apologist, under the ed- 
itorial supervision of the Rev. William Nast," and 
pledging the Conference, as far as practicable, to 
promote its circulation, especially among the Ger- 
man population in the State. 

, The tide of emigration from Germany had set in, 
and thousands were landing on our shores. While 
some of them were truly religious, the great ma- 
jority of them were without any well-defined re- 
ligious faith. The Reformation of the sixteenth 
century had its origin in Germany, through the in- 
strumentality of Martin Luther, a young priest. 
Its splendor was soon full-orbed, but the blaze of 
its glory had died away, and Germany no longer 
held the place it once occupied on the map of 
Christian nations. 

On reaching America these foreigners were met 
by Romish priests, who placed in their hands a lit- 
erature that would not only poison their minds and 
lead them farther away from God, but would efiect- 
ually close their hearts against the truth forever. 
The duty of Protestant Christians was obvious, and 
the Methodist Church — the most popular and influ- 
ential Church in the United States — would be un- 
true to its mission if it should not lead in the effort 
to save the Teutonic population. 

Quite a number of Germans had selected the city 



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271 



of Louisville as their home, and the obligation of 
the Kentucky Conference to supply them with all 
the facilities within their power was apparent. ~No 
better method suggested itself than to place in their 
hands a religious weekly paper, which, by its influ- 
ence and teachings, would bring them to Christ. 

Mr. East was a German, an accomplished gentle- 
man, a ripe scholar, and, above all, a devoted 
Christian. He knew the character of his country- 
men, and perhaps no other man in the Methodist 
Church was better qualified to exert a salutary in- 
fluence over this people. 

In a previous chapter we referred to the impulse 
given to the cause of Missions by the sermon of 
Bishop Andrew, preached in Shelby ville in 1835. 
Since then the Church occupied a more elevated 
plane, and the collections had annually improved, 
reaching this year the handsome sum of $5,589.80. 
Of this amount William Holman collected from the 
Lexington Station $174, John Carr Harrison 8112, 
from Versailles, and John Beatty, from Georgetown, 
$109.25. In the Augusta District, the Millersburg 
Circuit sent to the Conference, by Carlisle Babbitt, 
$500 — the largest amount contributed by any charge 
— while its neighbor, the Paris Circuit (which was 
left to be supplied), paid over $321.22. Samuel 
Veach collected, in the Minerva Circuit, $200; Hi- 
ram Baker, in the Germantown Circuit, $117; and 
John Waring $116.50, in the Greensburg Circuit. 
The largest amount collected in the Harrodsburg 
District was $190.25, and was sent from Mount 
Sterling by Joseph Marsee. Thomas Rankin, from 



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Winchester Circuit, collected $148.25, and Absalom 
Woolliscroft |130.50, from Madison. In the Louis- 
ville District, the Hardinsburg Circuit sent, by Daniel 
S. Barksclale, $200; Richard Tydings collected, from 
the Fourth-street Station, in Louisville, $156; and 
George W. Brush $118, from Brook-street. The 
Jefferson Circuit, where Richard Deering had charge, 
contributed $150.62}, while Science Hill Female 
Academy, in Shelbyville, sent $120. Hopkinsville 
Circuit, in Hopkinsville District, through Gilby 
Kelly, the pastor, sent to the Conference $101. In 
the Greensburg District, J oseph D. Barnett collected, 
in the Elizabeth Circuit, $411; William M. Grubbs, 
in the Salt River Circuit, $245.75; James King, in 
the Glasgow Circuit, $201; Matthew N. Lasley, in 
the Lebanon Circuit, $197.75; Elijah M. Bosley, in 
the Columbia Circuit, $173.50; Hubbard H. Kava- 
naugh, in Barclstown, $158.50; and George W. 
Taylor, in Greensburg, $102. 

We have mentioned only the charges in which 
one hundred dollars or more was contributed to this 
noble cause. In adding the entire amount received, 
including the sums under one hundred dollars, we 
find the contribution by Lexington District to be 
$173.90; Maysville District, $1,421.59J; Harrods- 
burg District, $708; Louisville District, $939.37; 
Hopkinsville District, $281; Greensburg District, 
$1,638.50; Barboursville District, $77.43|. Total, 
$5,539.80. 

Four thousand nine hundred and five dollars and 
sixty-nine cents was contributed toward the support 
of the superannuated preachers, and the widows and 



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273 



orphans of preachers, and to make up the deficien- 
cies of those who had not obtained their regular 
allowance on the circuits. 

Allen Sears, George W. Simcoe, Peter O. Meeks, 
Valentine C. Holding, Stephen A. Eathbun, Elihu 
Green, Peter Duncan, David H. Davis, William H. 
Anderson, Elkanah Johnson, and Nathanael H. Lee, 
were admitted on trial. 

Of those who had entered the Conference the 
previous year, Wright Merrick and Jesse P. Murrell 
asked to be discontinued on account of ill health. 

Henry McDaniel, Lorenzo D. Parker, Thomas 
Lasley, Foster H. Blades, Silas Lee, Hiram Baker, 
William Helm, and Milton Jamieson, located. 

Thomas H. Gibbons had died during the year.* 
By a resolution of the Conference, Hubbard H. 
Kavanaugh was requested to preach a sermon in 
his memory. 

We have in the Conference eight Districts, in- 
stead of seven, as the year before. Isaac Collard, 
who had traveled the Logan Circuit, was placed in 
charge of the Augusta District. Thomas W. Chand- 
ler was changed from the Augusta to the Covington 
District. Jonathan Stamper, whose previous field 
of labor was the Greensburg District, was sent to 
the Shelby ville District. John James, whose term 
of office had expired on the Harrodsburg District, 
became the leader in the Bowling Green District. 
George W. Taylor was changed from the Greens- 
burg Circuit to the Harrodsburg District; while 

*A sketch of Thomas H. Gibbons may be found in the 
"History of Methodism in Kentucky." 
12* 



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Benjamin T. Crouch, William Gunn, and Richard 
D. Neale, were returned to the fields they had occu- 
pied the previous year. 

In looking over the appointments, we find Wil- 
liam Holman returned to Lexington, Thomas N. 
Ralston to Maysville, Samuel Yeach to Minerva, 
Carlisle Babbitt to Millersburg, John Waring to 
Greenupsburg, Joseph Marsee to Mount Sterling, 
John W. Riggin to Sharpsburg, Edward Stevenson 
to Danville and Harrodsburg, Richard Tydings to 
Fourth - street in Louisville, George W. Brush to 
Brook - street, Robert G. Gardner to Madisonville, 
Edwin Roberts to Morganfield, James King to Glas- 
gow, and William M. Grubbs to Salt River. The 
preachers, with these exceptions, were changed in 
their appointments. 

The Conference, throughout, was pleasant and 
harmonious, and the preaching was of a high order. 
Bishop Waugh, although a stranger, won upon the 
hearts of the preachers and the community, and 
Bishop Morris left Danville with increased popu- 
larity. 

The pulpit in the Methodist Church was occupied, 
on Sunday, at eleven o'clock by Bishop Waugh, 
and at three o'clock by Bishop Morris. Both ser- 
mons were extraordinary. That of Bishop Waugh 
was addressed to the preachers, while Bishop Morris 
preached to the people. For one hour and fifteen 
minutes the former, with a power we have seldom 
witnessed, stirred the hearts of the preachers, urging 
them, by virtue of their high calling, of their re- 
sponsibility to God, and of the peril of the multi- 



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275 



tudes exposed to Jehovah's wrath and journeying to 
the grave and to hell, to be faithful embassadors for 
Jesus Christ. Neither sunshine nor storm, heat nor 
cold, the applause of the people nor the persecutions 
of the world, must obstruct the path of duty. With 
the one purpose of doing good, he exhorted them to 
greater earnestness and fidelity in the work to which 
God had called them. 

The sermon of Bishop Morris occupied about 
thirty minutes. His subject was the nature and 
importance of conversion, and it fell like the gentle 
dews of heaven upon the hearts of the large and at- 
tentive assembly. 

The missionary meeting, held in the Presbyterian 
Church on Saturday evening, was a decided success. 
The principal speaker was Mr. Kavanaugh. The 
collection was a good one. 

Several preachers, on their way to the Conference 
at Danville, stopped for dinner at a plain country 
house, between Salvisa and Harrodsburg. Benja- 
min T. Crouch was among them. The gentleman 
and his wife both gave them a kind reception, and 
entertained them with the hospitality for which the 
people of Kentucky have always been celebrated. 
Religion was the theme of conversation at the table, 
among the preachers, and their interchange of sen- 
timent was listened to with silent but rapt attention 
by the several members of the family. Immediately 
on leaving the table the guests were invited to have 
prayers, after which the gentleman went to the stable 
for their horses. Before he returned to the house 
Mr. Crouch said he would like to know to what 



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Church, if any, the family belonged. One of the 
preachers suggested that they were Presbyterians, 
another that they were Baptists, and a third that 
they were Campbellites, while a fourth expressed 
the belief that they were members of the Methodist 
Church. A young preacher present, who had given 
no opinion, was asked by Mr. Crouch to tell what 
he thought. 

" Their family Bible," he replied, " will give you 
the information you wish/' 

"How so?" asked Mr. Crouch, at the same time 
handing the Bible to the young preacher from the 
small table by which he was sitting. 

The young preacher replied: "In reading the 
Bible, the portion of it which indicates the denom- 
inational preference of a family will be more soiled 
than the other parts. For example: if a man be a 
Campbellite, the second chapter of The Acts of the 
Apostles will show his religious tendency; if he be 
a Presbyterian, the ninth chapter of Romans is his 
favorite; if he be a Free-will Baptist, the damaged 
appearance of the eighth chapter of Acts and the 
sixth of Romans betrays his preference; if he be a 
Calvinistic Baptist, to these two chapters he adds 
the ninth of Romans." 

"But if he be a Methodist," said Mr. Crouch, 
"what then?" 

"If he be a Methodist," said the young preacher, 
"the Bible has been read regularly from Genesis to 
Revelation." 

"Now tell us," said Mr. Crouch, "to what Church 
this family belongs." 



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277 



The Bible was opened at the several places speci- 
fied, and, after a brief examination, the young man 
said: "The eighth chapter of Acts and the sixth 
and ninth of Romans are more defaced than any 
other parts; the gentleman who lives here is a 
Hard-shell Baptist." 

A moment later the host himself appeared at the 
door, when Mr. Crouch inquired of him, " To what 
Church do you and your family belong ?" 

"We are Iron-jacket Baptists" he replied. The 
interpretation was correct. 

The extensive revivals with which the Church in 
Kentucky had been blessed during the two years 
which had just closed more than repaired the losses 
previously reported. The year, however, on which 
these cavaliers are now entering will give additional 
luster to their arms. 

The first note of triumph, after the close of the 
Conference, is heard from the Mount Sterling Cir- 
cuit, in the Lexington District. Joseph Marsee, 
who had been successful in that charge the pre- 
vious year, was returned to the same field. He had 
scarcely entered upon the labors of his favored 
charge when the good w T ork began afresh, and 
within a few weeks ninety-nine persons were added 
to the Church. 

Although there were "times of refreshing'' during 
the winter, in other portions of the same District, 
yet there was no general revival until the opening 
of spring. Albert Kelly had charge of the Burling- 
ton Circuit, with Absalom Woolliscroft — w T ho sus- 
tained a supernumerary relation — as his colleague. 



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Western Cavaliers. 



On the 17th of May they reported two hundred ac- 
cessions to the Church, up to that time. A little 
later in the year Jeremiah Strother — a popular and 
useful local preacher — reported ninety conversions 
in the Carrollton Circuit, to which Thomas Hall 
had been sent. 

The first revival reported from the Augusta Dis- 
trict was in the Fleming Circuit, under the ministry 
of Peter O. Meeks, a young man of fine culture, of 
more than ordinary promise, and of deep piety. 
Although the work of grace in that charge was not 
extensive, yet profitable meetings were held all over 
the circuit, and up to the first of June thirty-three 
persons had joined the Church. The Germantown 
Circuit, under the ministry of John Xevius and 
Stephen A. Eathbun, continued to prosper, while 
Josiah Whitaker was instrumental in doing much 
good in the Lewis Circuit. The " pleasure of the 
Lord prospered in the hands" of the faithful Jedi- 
diah Foster, in the Little Sandy Circuit ; while the 
vigilant and earnest James C. Crow, on the High- 
land Circuit, was eminently successful in winning 
souls to Christ. 

In the Covington District, Robert Y. McReynolds 
reported a gracious revival in Newport, as early as 
the 14th of December, at which twenty-two persons 
joined the Church. The interest continued all the 
winter, during which time sixty-six persons became 
the professed followers of Christ. In most of the 
charges in this District a decrease is reported for 
this year; yet, through a faithful ministry, hundreds 
were brought to Christ. 



Western Cavaliers. 



279 



For three years Benjamin T. Crouch had been the 
leader on the Louisville District. No cavalier in 
the service had been more faithful, and none held a 
warmer place in the affections of either his brother 
soldiers or the people he served. In the city of 
Louisville, the previous year, under the ministry of 
George W. Brush and Richard Tydings, hundreds 
had been brought into the fold of Christ. Other 
portions of this District, as we have seen in the pre- 
ceding chapter, had been favored with revivals of 
religion. The present year, however, in the power 
and extent of the work, would surpass any of the 
years that had gone before. 

In other parts of the State the ministry of John 
Newland Maffitt had been greatly blessed. Indeed, 
wherever he had labored sinners had been awakened 
and penitents converted to God; in every commu- 
nity where he had unfurled the banner of the cross 
many had sought a shelter beneath its crimsoned 
folds. Immediately after the Conference closed Mr. 
Tydings invited him to Louisville, to assist him in a 
meeting in Fourth-street Church. He continued in 
Louisville several months, preaching the gospel with 
the fidelity and zeal for which he was distinguished. 
As early as the 4th of January Mr. Tydings reports 
more than one hundred conversions under his minis- 
try, and on the first of February W. M. Meriwether, 
in a letter to the Christian Advocate, announces that 
one hundred and seventy-eight persons had wit- 
nessed a good confession. On the 22d of February a 
characteristic letter was written by Richard Tydings, 
which appeared in the same paper of March 15. He 



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wrote : " Say to the friends of Zion that the work of 
the Lord is still going on in this city. The whole 
city, from the center to the circumference, seems to 
be moved by the mighty influence of divine truth. 
The high, the low, the rich, the poor, are coming 
home to Christ, by scores and hundreds. Since the 
revival commenced, in November last, about three 
hundred and sixty white and one hundred and 
thirty colored have been received in the Fourth- 
street Station, in this city, and the glorious work is 
still going on. Such a work for the union, peace, 
and comfort of the Church, reclaiming backsliders, 
and the awakening and ingathering of penitent be- 
lieving sinners into the fold of Christ, I think I 
have never witnessed before during the thirty years 
of my labor in the traveling ministry. I have seen 
many glorious revivals, but this exceeds any I have 
ever known. Indeed, it seems to me that the long- 
looked-for millennium is about to blaze forth in all 
its splendor and glory; for the blessed work is going 
on in every direction around us." Such a letter is 
well worthy the grand old man who had given his 
life to this noble work. A few weeks later W. M. 
Meriwether writes again, and says : " Five hundred 
persons have been converted and added to the 
Church." The revival was not confined to the 
Fourth-street charge. The Brook-street Church, the 
prosperity of which exceeded that of the Fourth- 
street the previous year, still enjoyed the divine 
favor. The ministry of Mr. Brush was again very 
successful. 

This extraordinary revival in the city of Louisville 



Western Cavaliers. 



281 



was but the dawn of a better day for the entire Dis- 
trict. In the Hardinsburg Circuit, in charge of 
Joseph D. Barnett, with Albert H. Bedford as his 
colleague, a revival commenced at a Christmas meet- 
ing, held at Big Spring, at which nine persons pro- 
fessed religion. The year before Daniel S. Barksdale 
and Moses Levi were exceedingly successful in that 
field. Through their instrumentality hundreds were 
brought into the Church. After the Christmas 
meeting, besides an occasional conversion and addi- 
tion to the Church, nothing remarkable occurred in 
the circuit during the winter. The congregations, 
however, were large and attentive. Whether the 
preachers held service during the week or on Sun- 
day, many waited on the ministry of the word. The 
preacher in charge was distinguished no less for his 
zeal than for the skill he exhibited in the manage- 
ment of a meeting. Besides, he was much beloved 
by the Church and remarkably popular with all the 
people. 

It was midsummer when indications of a general 
revival made their appearance. The third quar- 
terly-meeting was held, and the Presiding Elder was 
present in the spirit of the Master. His preaching 
had in it more of fire than he had usually mani- 
fested. He brought encouraging reports from other 
portions of his District, which he said were " in a 
blaze of glory." His words inspired the Church 
w T ith confidence. While he was preaching from the 
text, " Yea, doubtless, and I count all things but loss 
for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus 
my Lord," a halo of glory seemed to encircle the 



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congregation. A mother in Israel shouted aloud the 
praises of God; three persons joined the Church. 
A few weeks later a meeting was held at Union 
Star, in Breckinridge county, at which forty-two 
persons "passed from death unto life." An old 
man who had lived more than four-score years was 
among the number. Revivals followed in quick 
succession in Hardinsburg, at Mount Zion, Rough 
Creek, Liberty Camp-ground, and at a camp-meet- 
ing held at the head of Rough Creek. The entire 
circuit was in a flame, and hundreds were entering 
upon a new and better life. At the camp-meeting 
at the head of Rough Creek scarcely a person who 
attended the meeting left it unblessed. On Monday 
afternoon it was proposed by Mr. Barnett that all 
persons who had been converted should file off to 
the right of the pulpit, and that those who had no 
evidence of acceptance with God should occupy the 
left. Only seven persons were to be seen on the 
left. They were young men, and asked an interest 
in the prayers of the Church. The junior preacher 
requested them to accompany him to an adjoining 
grove, where they knelt and prayed together, and 
six of them were powerfully converted, and the en- 
tire number joined the Church. Alberry L. Alder- 
son was present at this camp-meeting, and preached 
with great power; and there, too, was John F. 
South, a young man of great promise, just entering 
the ministry, accompanied by his pious mother, 
whose prayers in the altar went up like sweet in- 
cense to God. 

During the progress of these meetings four hun- 



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283 



dred and fifty-seven persons were converted, and 
more than that number added to the Church. 

The morning on which the junior preacher left 
the circuit for Conference many friends met him at 
church, where they held a prayer-meeting, at which 
sixteen persons professed religion. 

While such displays of divine power were mani- 
fested in the Hardinsburg Circuit, the Newcastle 
Circuit, in the upper portion of the District was 
sharing in the riches of grace. James D. Holding, 
one of the sweetest spirits that ever lived, and 
William H. Anderson, a young man of superior lit- 
erary attainments, and of great promise to the pulpit, 
were the preachers. Mr. Holding had scarcely 
reached the meridian of life, and Mr. Anderson had 
just entered the ministry. Zealous in the prosecu- 
tion of their Master's work, each strove to excel the 
other " in winning souls to Christ." Success crowned 
their efforts. Before the summer months had passed 
there was a revival of religion, which spread all over 
the circuit. On the 6th of September a meeting 
was commenced in Bedford, at which more than one 
hundred souls were converted, and one hundred and 
twelve joined the Church; and at the fourth quar- 
terly-meeting, held at Funk's Camp-ground, thirty 
were converted and added to the Church. At the 
close of the year five hundred and twelve persons 
were gathered as so many witnesses to the valor, 
and energy, and faithfulness of these ministers of 
Christ. 

James D. Holding was a remarkable man, and, if 
not distinguished for pulpit ability, was eminent for 



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his piety and usefulness. He was born in Scott 
county, Kentucky, June 1, 1810. When in the 
fourteenth year of his age he was converted to God 
— the first-fruits of his mother's consistent religious 
life. He at once united himself with the Methodist 
Church, and, like Timothy, he grew rapidly in the 
knowledge and love of God. At an early age he 
was appointed to the responsible office of class- 
leader, which he filled with profit and acceptability. 
In August, 1834, he was licensed to preach, and ad- 
mitted on trial into the Kentucky Conference the 
same year. 

His first appointment was to the Shelby Circuit, 
as the colleague of William Gunn. In 1835 he was 
sent to the Kentucky Mission, in the mountain re- 
gion of the State, and in 1836 to the Hartford Cir- 
cuit, about four hundred miles from his former field 
of labor. At the Conference of 1837 we find him 
on the Cynthiana Circuit, in which he had been 
brought up, converted, and licensed to preach the 
gospel. In these several fields Mr. Holding had 
been greatly beloved and successful. Hundreds 
had been brought to Christ through his ministra- 
tions. 

In the summer of 1837 we accompanied William 
Gunn, the Presiding Elder on the Louisville District, 
to the lower portion of his work, where we first met 
Mr. Holding. He was traveling on the Hartford 
Circuit, and his ministry there had been greatly 
blessed. He was tall and well formed for endur- 
ance, with dark complexion and dark eyes, and with 
a countenance full of benignity, which at once drew 



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us toward him, or rather took us into his warm 
heart. In the autumn of 1838 he was sent to the 
Newcastle Circuit, where we have seen the success 
that followed him and his colleague. 

The preaching of Mr. Holding was of the horta- 
tory character. His sermons were chiefly appeals 
to sinners to he reconciled to God, and his exhorta- 
tions were often powerful and overwhelming, reach- 
ing the hearts of his audience, and moving them to 
a higher and a better life. He literally went " forth 
weeping, bearing precious seed." Tears of grief, be- 
cause men and women refused to be saved, flowed 
freely down his manly face. Everybody loved him. 

In the Elizabeth Circuit, Alberry L. Alderson was 
efficient in his duties. Although no extraordinary 
revival occurred on his work, yet through his instru- 
mentality many w T ere brought to Christ. During 
his ministry on that circuit the Church at Graham- 
ton was organized. It has had an active member- 
ship ever since, and from it the Conference has been 
supplied with several worthy and able preachers. 

Amongst the preachers distinguished for their 
usefulness at this period, the name of Moses Levi 
deserves to be mentioned. He was born in Charles- 
ton, South Carolina, April 4, 1786. His parents 
were lineal descendants of Abraham, and claimed to 
be of the tribe of Levi, and brought up their son in 
the Jewish religion. He was converted in 1820. 
We have no advice as to the time he came to Ken- 
tucky. "We first saw him at the Conference held 
in Shelbyville, in 1835, where he was a visitor, and 
where his sweet singing attracted much attention. 



286 



Western Cavaliers. 



We learned that he resided in Louisville, where he 
was engaged in business as a merchant-tailor, and 
was useful as a local preacher. At the Conference 
of 1837 he was admitted on trial. Without the 
advantages of an English education, and, indeed, 
without being able to read, he passed a creditable 
examination before the committee to examine ap- 
plicants for admission on trial — of which Mr. Bas- 
com was chairman. He answered the questions 
submitted to him, on geography and history, with 
as much accuracy as though he had been a diligent 
student in these departments. Not a line of Blair's 
Rhetoric had ever been read to him, and yet his ex- 
amination was highly creditable. The figures he 
employed, and the illustrations he used, though not 
the same as those used by the distinguished author, 
were equally forcible and expressive. On English 
grammar he was at fault in the theory, but passably 
accurate in practice. "I could never," he said to 
Mr. Bascom, "see the sense in going over nouns, 
compunctions, insurrections, and congregations." 
In the books on theology he was entirely at home. 
Orthodox in his religious belief, he was prepared to 
defend with signal ability the cardinal truths of the 
Bible. When asked by Mr. Bascom whether he had 
read the works of Wesley and Fletcher, his reply 
was : " You may report that I believe them all, with 
the exception of Mr. Wesley's sermon on the resur- 
rection of the inferior animal creation." With the 
Bible and Hymn-book he was perfectly familiar. 
We have been present when he read his Lessons 
from the Old and New Testaments, with the Bible 



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287 



before him, and when he would line his hymn, al- 
though he did not recognize a letter. We have 
heard him when he quoted in support of his posi- 
tions as many as sixty passages of Scripture, in a 
sermon, giving the chapter and verse, with the most 
perfect accuracy. 

When Mr. Levi entered the itinerant ministry he 
was fifty-one years of age. Although his hair was 
silver-gray, yet his constitution was unimpaired, and 
he promised many years of usefulness to the Church. 
We have already seen the success with which his 
ministry was crowned on the Hardinsburg Circuit. 
On the La Grange Circuit, where we now find him, 
the churches where he preached were crowded with 
anxious listeners, who were attracted by the truths 
of the Bible as presented by this son of Abraham. 
With a keen, ringing voice that could be distinctly 
heard in the largest assemblies, he proclaimed the 
tidings of a Redeemer's love, and incited the Church 
to a higher life, and sinners to repent and turn to 
God. While his singing attracted hundreds, many 
more were aroused by his powerful exhortations. 

He reached La Grange Circuit immediately after 
the close of the Conference, and entered upon his 
work with the zeal of an apostle. During the winter 
interesting revivals blessed his labors in different 
portions of his charge, and before the close of spring 
eighty persons had " witnessed a good confession." 
On the 8th of June he commenced a meeting in 
Westport, which continued through several weeks, 
and resulted in one hundred and twentj^ conver- 
sions. The entire circuit was in a blaze; every ap- 



288 



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pointment was on fire, and before he left for the 
ensuing Conference four hundred and thirty-three 
persons had "passed from death unto life," and 
"were added to the Church." 

In the Hartford Circuit, under the ministry of 
Joseph Gr. Ward and Seraiah S. Deering, one hun- 
dred persons were received into the Church. 

The Louisville District extended, on the Ohio 
River, from Westport to Yellow Banks (now Owens- 
boro), a distance of two hundred miles. At almost 
every appointment along the winding banks of the 
river "the voice of thanksgiving and praise" was 
heard. Westport, Louisville, Brandenburg, Hawes- 
ville, New Chapel, and Yellow Banks, joined in 
peeans of praise to a common Lord. In the Yellow 
Banks Circuit, Daniel S. Barksdale and Richard 
Holding witnessed the triumphs of the cross. 

Richard Holding was born in Scott countj^, Ken- 
tucky, November 28, 1808. He professed religion 
and united with the Methodist Episcopal Church 
September 10, 1831. We have no advice as to the 
precise time he was licensed to preach; but in the 
Minutes of 1832 we find him enrolled as a traveling 
preacher. His first appointment was to the Madi- 
son Circuit, as the colleague of John Beatty. In 
1833 he was sent, with John Williams, to the Mount 
Vernon Circuit. In 1834 his appointment was to 
the Cumberland Mission, with the gifted Napoleon 
B. Lewis as his colleague. There was no appoint- 
ment in the Conference more difficult to travel than 
this. It embraced a very large extent of territory 
in the most mountainous region of the State, with 



Western Cavaliers. 289 



thirty-three appointments, several of them many 
miles distant from each other. The duties of a mis- 
sionary in this field were by no means easily per- 
formed. 

On one occasion Mr. Holding was riding along a 
devious stream, in Harlan county, with mountains 
on either side, whose summits seemed to kiss the 
flying clouds. He was meditating on the love of 
God, as shown to mankind in the gift of his Son 
Jesus Christ, and w^as offering up the gratitude of 
his heart for His " loving-kindness and tender mer- 
cies." Every thing around him was still, save now 
and then the warbling of a feathered songster dis- 
turbed the silence of the hour. The road was a 
dreary one. A human voice on the mountain-side 
arrested his attention. 

"Stop, stop, stop!" cried a rough-looking man, 
armed with rifle and butcher-knife, bounding down 
the mountain, accompanied by two others equally 
rough, and armed like himself. 

To escape was impossible. Anticipating an at- 
tack from ruffians, he checked his jaded horse and 
prepared to meet them with the boldest front he 
could present. As they drew nearer he asked them 
what they wanted. 

"Don't be sheered, Mr. Preacher; we wouldn't 
hurt you for the universe." 

"You know me, then?" said Mr. Holding. 

"I do," said the one who first accosted him. "I 
heern you preach yesterday, and was tellin' these 
fellers about you; and seem' you oomin' along, I 
thought you would n't mind ef I'd jest stop you a 
13* 



290 



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minnit and show you to 'em, as they never seed a 
Methodist preacher afore." 

"I am glad to make your acquaintance/' said the 
preacher, at the same time offering his hand to each 
of them. After conversing with them awhile on 
the subject of their souls' salvation, he bade them 
farewell. 

In 1835 he traveled the Shelby Circuit, with 
George W. Merritt as his colleague. In all these 
fields of labor he gathered sinners into the fold of 
Christ, and left behind him the savor of a good 
name. 

In 1836 and 1837 we find him on the Yellow 
Banks Circuit, still laboring with apostolic zeal. 
The Yellow Banks Circuit at that time extended, 
on the Ohio River, from Cloverport to the mouth 
of Green River, and from Owensboro to Rumsey, 
over a country which in great part was flat and 
marshy, with twenty-six appointments, to be filled 
every four weeks. The- arduous labors of Mr. 
Holding on this circuit greatly impaired one of the 
finest constitutions in the Conference, and compelled 
him, in 1838, to ask for a supernumerary relation. 
It is in this relation we find him, as the colleague 
of Daniel S. Barksdale, the present year, on the 
Yellow Banks Circuit. Notwithstanding the rela- 
tion he sustained to the Conference indicated that 
but little ministerial labor was expected of him, yet 
we see him in the pulpit every Sabbath, and often 
during the week. The preacher in charge was 
active and zealous, and on his former circuit was 
eminently successful. In th,e summer of 1839, under 



We stern Cavaliers. 



291 



the ministry of these two faithful men, one hundred 
and fifty persons embraced religion in the town of 
Owensboro. The revival began at the quarterly- 
meeting, which commenced on the 25th of May. 
Mr. Crouch, the Presiding Elder, was present, and 
preached with great power and ability. Methodist 
preachers had for several years visited Owensboro, 
and preached to the people; and although a small 
Society had been organized, yet this was the first 
revival of religion that had ever occurred in that 
village. A few weeks later the village of Hawes- 
ville had a gracious outpouring of the Holy Spirit, 
through the instrumentality of the same preachers, 
assisted by Henry Hughes, a local preacher of con- 
siderable pulpit ability. At this meeting one hun- 
dred persons were converted and ninety-two joined 
the Methodist Episcopal Church. New Chapel — a 
country church about seven miles from Hawesville — 
had for several years been a preaching-place, but not 
a soul had ever been converted since the erection of 
the church. Prom Hawesville the revival extended 
to that neighborhood, embracing in its power and 
influence almost the entire community. A writer 
in the Western Christian Advocate, who witnessed 
these meetings, declared that there were " not fifteen 
persons in the neighborhood left unconverted." * 
At the camp-meeting held at Pleasant Grove in 
August, ninety-four persons joined the Church, and 
one hundred and twenty professed religion. 

With the exception of the Jefferson Circuit, the 
entire District had been in a flame. We are not 



* Western Christian Advocate, October 18, 1839. 



292 



Western Cavaliers. 



surprised at the following letter from Benjamin T. 
Crouch, the Presiding Elder, written from his quiet 
home : 

"Harmony Landing, Sept. 30, 1839. 

" We have just closed the regular quarterly work 
of this District for ttoe present year. We now 
hasten to a two-days' meeting, and then forthwith 
set our face toward the place of Conference, and as 
w T e go preach; for we have several appointments on 
the way. This has been an eventful year to us in 
the Louisville District — full of toils, rich in mercy, 
and gracious and cheering in success. The great 
Head of the Church has visited the District gen- 
erally, and the showers of reviving grace have fallen 
most delightfully and copiously in many neighbor- 
hoods and Societies. Hundreds of sinners have been 
convinced of sin and converted to God, and happy 
hundreds of living Christians have been quickened, 
revived, and encouraged in their march to the prom- 
ised land. From the Kentucky River above to the 
Green River below 1 - the entire length of our Dis- 
trict has resounded with the high praises of God, 
especially along the margin of the beautiful Ohio. 
What will be our net increase cannot now be cer- 
tainly determined; but the numerous admissions 
on probation during the year must, we think, give 
us an aggregate of from seventeen hundred to two 
thousand in the entire District. Thue has God our 
Saviour blessed the humble efforts of his dependent 
servants. 

" We take pleasure in recording that some of the 
young men have been the most favored and efficient 



Western Cavaliers. 



293 



instruments in the revivals in this District. God 
grant that these zealous beginners in gospel labor 
may abound more and more in usefulness and holi- 
ness ! c Blessed be the name of the Lord Most High 
for all his goodness to the children of men/ 

"Among our enjoyments we have, however, expe- 
rienced none of those long intervals of rest assigned 
to Presiding Elders by a late communication in the 
Advocate. We know nothing, in our experience, of 
three or four weeks' leisure at a time, amidst the 
comforts of home. Indeed, from three to five days' 
enjoyment at home, in that many weeks, is quite a 
domestic treat to some of us. We well know the 
great pleasure of staying at home a whole day to- 
gether, after an absence of four weeks, before we 
start again. But labor is rest, and pain is sweet, 
and even privation is pleasant, where Jesus our 
Lord is present. "With Christ in the ship, we smile 
at toil and pain, and dread not the pelting storm. 
This is not our rest. G that the work of our God 
may still spread wider and extend farther, even to 
the ends of the earth ! " * 

The first revival in the Shelbyville District oc- 
curred in Shelbyville, under the ministry of Henry 
E. Pilch er. A meeting was held in January, which 
resulted in forty additions to the Church. After 
a few weeks' respite the services of the meeting 
were resumed and protracted through the month of 
March, and at its close one hundred and fourteen 
persons were added to the Church, and about the 
same number were converted. In the Salt Eiver 
* Western Christian Advocate, October 17, 1839. 



294 



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Circuit, the labors of William M. Grubbs were still 
blessed, and all around that circuit there were times 
of prosperity. In the month of July Shelbyville 
was again visited by a gracious revival, under the 
ministry of John X. Maffitt; while, in the Hodgen- 
ville Circuit, Eobinson E. Sidebottom received sixty 
persons into the Church. The Danville and Har- 
rodsburg Station, with Edward Stevenson as the 
leader, still had refreshing times. In both the white 
and colored membership there was a large increase. 
In the Irwin and Mount Vernon Circuits — the for- 
mer under the ministry of Wesley G. Montgomery, 
and the latter with Elihu Green as pastor — there 
were gracious revivals, and nearly one hundred per- 
sons in each of these charges were received into the 
Church. Andrew Peace, in charge of the Somerset 
Circuit, and Edmund M. Johnson, the preacher on 
Liberty Circuit, were also greatly blessed in their 
ministry. 

In the Bowling Green District, Thomas Waring 
reports, early in May. thirty additions to the Church 
in the Greensburs; Circuit, and at the close of the 
year two hundred and thirteen. The ministry of 
William B. Maxey was greatly blessed in the Wayne 
Circuit, and that of Robert Fisk in the Burksville 
Circuit was also approved by the Master. 

Peter Taylor was sent this year to the Russellville 
Station, in the Hopkinsville District. He was born 
in Billings, Lancashire, England, February 28, 1809. 
In 1817 he came to America, and in the spring of 
1830 joined the Methodist Episcopal Church. He 
was soon appointed to the responsible office of class- 



We stern C avaliers. 



295 



leader, in which he was useful, and then licensed to 
exhort, and to preach. 

In 1834 he was admitted on trial into the Ken- 
tucky Conference, and appointed to the Little Sandy 
Circuit, with Lorenzo D. Parker; and in 1835 he was 
the colleague of John W. Riggin, on the German- 
town Circuit. In 1836 we find him traveling the 
Fleming Circuit, with John Waring as the junior 
preacher; and in 1837 his field of labor was the 
Louisa Circuit. In the several fields of labor he 
had occupied he proved himself a workman " who 
needed not to be ashamed." He understood well 
the duties and responsibilities of the sacred office 
to which he was called, and discharged them with 
fidelity. Success crowned his ministry, and through 
his instrumentality many were brought to Christ. 
His preaching was of the tender and persuasive 
character. Whether he pleaded with the sinner to 
be reconciled to God, whether he offered comfort to 
the people of God, or whether he administered the 
consolations of religion to the bereaved or afflicted, 
there was a softness in his manner that rendered 
him dear to those whom he served. We have seen 
an entire audience melted to tears under his min- 
istry, and we have heard rejoicing in the house of 
God while he talked of the comforts of religion and 
the hope of eternal life. As a Christian, he was 
above reproach. Soundly converted, he lived in the 
enjoyment of religion, and was ready on all occa- 
sions to give "a reason of the hope that was in 
him." Immediately after the close of the session 
of the Conference he entered upon his work at 



296 



Western Cavaliers. 



Russell ville, where his labors were greatly blessed. 
At a meeting held a few weeks after he reached his 
work twelve persons were converted and joined the 
Church. 

Napoleon B. Lewis this year traveled the Green- 
ville Circuit. 'So preacher in the Conference was 
more zealous and indefatigable than Mr. Lewis, and 
none more eminently successful in winning souls to 
Christ. In the Greenville Circuit, revivals crowned 
his labors everywhere, and at the close of the year 
more than two hundred persons had been received 
into the Church. 

While Mr. Lewis was pushing the battle to the 
gates of the enemy in the Greenville Circuit, Gilby 
Kelly and Nathanael H. Lee — the former a preacher 
of several years' experience, and the latter a zealous 
young man who had just been admitted on trial — 
were making conquests for the Messiah on the Hop- 
kinsville Circuit. Laboring shoulder to shoulder in 
the Master's cause, they brought into the fold of 
Christ many weary wanderers in search of truth. 
During the year one hundred and fifty joined the 
Church. Abram Long, at the same time, was win- 
ning trophies to the Redeemer in the La Fayette 
Circuit; and in the Princeton Circuit George Switzer 
and David H. Davis accomplished much good. Be- 
fore the first of April forty-three persons professed 
religion and joined the Church, and one hundred and 
two during the year. The gifted Edwin Roberts, on 
the Morganfield Circuit, enjoyed another year of 
great prosperity ; while, through the instrumentality 
of Robert G. Gardner, on the Madison ville Circuit — 



Western Cavaliers. 



297 



which at that time included the town of Henderson 
— more than two hundred souls were converted. 
The Logan Circuit, with Calvin W. Lewis as the 
pastor, also realized the convicting power and con- 
verting grace of God. 

We pass to the Barboursville District, where 
Richard D. J^eale is found in the front of the battle. 
This District was supplied with efficient and enter- 
prising preachers. On the Williamsburg Circuit, 
we find the zealous George S. Gatewood; on the 
Barboursville Circuit, the sedate John B. Perry; 
Andrew J. McLaughlin travels the Mount Pleasant 
Mission; Aaron H. Rice, the Kentucky Mission; 
Robert F. Turner, the Prestonsburg Circuit; Wil- 
liam B. Landrum, the Louisa Circuit; William 
James, the West Liberty Mission; while the Man- 
chester Circuit is left to be supplied. 

In every charge in the mountain district there 
were gracious revivals of religion, while in some of 
them the good work was extensive. In the Mount 
Pleasant Mission there were one hundred and fifty, 
and in the Louisa Circuit fifty, additions to the 
Church. 

From the Kentucky Conference we now turn to 
Jackson's Purchase, embraced in the Tennessee Con- 
ference, where we still find the Hickman, Paducah, 
and Wadesboro Circuits. The preachers on the 
Hickman Circuit for this year were James R. Walker 
and William T. Jones; on the Paducah Circuit, 
Edmund J. Williams and Edwin W. Yancey; while 
J. T. Sherrill traveled on the Wadesboro Circuit. 
In this portion of Kentucky there was a decrease of 
13* 



298 



Western Cavaliers. 



thirty-six in the white membership, and an increase 
of nine in the colored. 

The net increase in the State of Kentucky for this 
year was two thousand four hundred and thirty-four 
white members, while in the colored membership 
there was a decrease of one hundred and forty-three. 



Western Cavaliers. 



299 



CHAPTER VIII. 

FEOM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1839 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1840. 

See how great a flame aspires, 

Kindled by a spark of grace ! 
Jesus' love the nations fires, 

Sets the kingdoms on a blaze. 
To bring fire on earth he came; 

Kindled in some hearts it is : 
that all might catch the flame, 

All partake the glorious bliss ! 

BISHOP SOULE presided at the Kentucky 
Conference of 1839, which convened in Rus- 
sellville October 16. Thomas 1ST. Ralston was elected 
Secretary, and William M. Grubbs Assistant Secre- 
tary. 

Richard Corwine, Peter Taylor, and William 
Holman, were appointed a Committee on Public 
Worship, and George W. Brush on Memoirs. 

Edward Stevenson, Henry N". Vandyke, and 
Robert Y. McReynolds, were appointed Stewards 
of the Conference. 

On the first morning of the session the following 
resolution w^as adopted by the Conference: 

"Resolved, That a committee of five be appointed, 



300 



Western Cavaliers. 



to be called the Committee on the Centenary, to 
consider and report on the subject of a Kentucky 
Conference Centenary meeting; the propriety of 
uniting such meeting with the anniversary of the 
Kentucky Conference Missionary Society; the pro- 
priety of postponing the final Centenary day to a 
later period than the 25th instant : and such other 
matters as to them may appear suitable to act upon, 
that the Conference may proceed safely and expe- 
ditiously on this interesting subject/' 

Joseph S. Tomlinson, Benjamin T. Crouch, Jona- 
than Stamper, Henry B. Bascom, and Isaac Collard. 
were constituted the committee. 

One hundred years had passed away since " eight 
or ten persons came to Mr. Wesley, in London, who 
appeared to be deeply convinced of sin. and earnestly 
groaning for redemption/" and whose object was 
"that he would spend some time with them in 
prayer, and advise them how to £ flee from the wrath 
to come,' which they saw continually hanging over 
their heads/"' During this period the " United So- 
ciety," of which "this was the rise," had spread not 
only through Europe, but through the civilized 
world. Methodism had become a recognized fact, 
and at her altars, both in Europe and America, 
thousands were worshiping. It was eminently 
proper for the leading branch of American Method- 
ism to recognize in a suitable manner the guardian 
care of Jehovah over his people, as well as to otter 
expressions of gratitude for the prosperity which 
had marked the progress of the Church during the 
century which was just closing. It was also proper 



Western Cavaliers. 



301 



for the Kentucky Conference to participate in the 
centennial celebration. 

The committee recommended that collections be 
taken up in the several circuits and stations, as a 
thank-offering to God, and that the amounts col- 
lected be equally divided between three great objects 
specified in the address of the Bishop — namely : one- 
third to missionary purposes, one-third to the cause 
of education, and one-third toward constituting a 
fund for the benefit of our superannuated preachers 
and the most necessitous cases in the Conference, 
and the widows and orphans of those who have died 
in the work. 

At this session of the Conference it was 

"Resolved, That we are as much as ever impressed 
with the importance of the course of study prescribed 
for our undergraduates, and that we witness with 
regret a remissness in attending to and enforcing an 
observance of it, and that in future we will insist 
more strictly upon the accomplishment of it on the 
part of all to whom it relates." 

We were glad to see an advance step in this mat- 
ter on the part of the Conference. The course of 
study prescribed for the undergraduates was not a 
difficult one. Any preacher with a fair amount of 
common sense, and with reasonable industry, could 
easily master it, and at the same time perform the 
duties of a pastor. We, however, mention with 
regret that undergraduates, in some instances, ap- 
peared before the Committee of Examination with 
but a superficial knowledge of the books in the 
course, and sometimes without having read more 



302 



Western Cavaliers. 



than one-half of them. Lenity had heretofore been 
extended to these delinquents. It is true that op- 
portunities for early mental training were rare, and 
many young men had entered the ministry without 
the advantages of even the most common education. 
The want of early opportunities for study very fre- 
quently made an excuse for remissness in this re- 
gard. In addition to this, young men were often 
excused on the ground that " gaining knowledge is 
good, but saving souls is better" — forgetting that 
the gaining of knowledge, instead of being a hin- 
derance to, will greatly facilitate, the saving of souls. 
Laxity could no longer be tolerated. A more rigid 
policy was essential to an effective ministry, and the 
Conference resolved to pursue it. 

On the third day a communication on the subject 
of Temperance, from the Xew York Conference, 
and one from the New England Conference, on the 
subject of Slavery, were received — both of which 
were laid on the table, to be taken up and consid- 
ered before the close of the session. 

On Monday morning the communication on the 
subject of Temperance, sent from the New York 
Conference, was called up. It was as follows: 

" Resolved, That the next General Conference be 
earnestly and respectfully requested and empowered 
so to alter the General Rules of the United Societies 
that the item respecting drunkenness may read as 
Mr. "Wesley framed it, which is in the following lan- 
guage — viz.: 4 Drunkenness, buying or selling spir- 
ituous liquors, or drinking them, unless in cases of 
extreme necessity.' " 



Western Cavaliers. 303 



The Conference concurred in this resolution by a 
vote of seventy-six to one. 

The communication from the New England Con- 
ference, on the subject of Slavery, was the same that 
had been sent out the previous year. The presiding 
Bishop made some scathing remarks in reference to 
the officious intermeddling of the New England 
Conference with the institution of slavery — after 
which the Conference voted unanimously to non- 
concur. 

The Conference adopted the following resolution: 

"Resolved, That the Conference cordially approve 
of the organization of the Western Methodist His- 
torical Society, in the city of Cincinnati; and that 
the Secretary of the Conference and the Presiding 
Elders of the several Districts be a committee to 
contribute appropriate material to that Society; and 
that for this purpose they shall have free access to 
all the books and papers belonging to this body; 
and that the members of the Conference, generally, 
be requested to contribute, as far as practicable, to 
the furtherance of the object of that Association." 

The object of this Society was to collect and pre- 
serve past and current events and incidents of Meth- 
odist history in the Western Conferences, for the 
use of the future historian. Laudable as was the 
design of the founders of this Society, it is to be 
regretted that among its archives there are very few 
contributions from Kentucky. 

No resolution was adopted during the session of 
more importance than theTollowing: 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, That 



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all the members of this body be respectfully re- 
quested and directed to use all proper means and 
efforts, at a period as early as practicable, to induce 
the people within their respective charges, and the 
several divisions of their labor, to address petitions 
and memorials to the Legislature of Kentucky, 
praying for the enactment of suitable laws for the 
suppression of the vice of Intemperance within the 
commonwealth of Kentucky, and especially to ap- 
peal to the Legislature for a change in the existing 
License Law, as it regards the sale of ardent spirits" 

This resolution was unanimously adopted by a 
rising vote. While the Secretary was reading it 
the feeling in the audience, as well as in the Confer- 
ence, was very intense, and before the reading closed 
the enthusiasm was greatly increased. A young 
preacher, who had only been admitted on trial the 
previous year, and hence not entitled to a vote, be- 
came so excited that he could not remain in his seat, 
and when those who favored the resolution were 
called on to rise, he stood a head and shoulders above 
them all. He was the tallest preacher in the house. 

It is gratifying to record that the Kentucky Con- 
ference, at this period, took such high and decisive 
ground on the subject of Temperance. Udt only 
the resolutions, but the practice, of the Conference 
favored the temperance movement. The ruin of 
intemperance was wide-spread, and its blight was 
upon a thousand homes. Young men of promise, 
who might have adorned society, had fallen victims 
to the deadly curse, and hoary age was reeling to 
and fro on the margin of the grave. The once rosy 



Western Cavaliers. 



305 



cheek of woman — mother, wife, daughter, sister — 
had turned pale, while the son, husband, father, 
or brother, was pressing the wine-cup to his lips. 
The pulpit met with no obstacle to its success so 
dangerous and so powerful as intemperance, and 
every motive of duty to God and of good-will to 
man urged the arrest of this dreadful evil.* The 
Conference determined that if intemperance should 
not be banished from the commonwealth, the fault 
should not be theirs; its power should at least be 
broken, and its influence checked. 

On Wednesday morning — the last clay of the ses- 
sion — the following persons were elected Delegates 
to the General Conference: Joseph S. Tomlinson, 
Henry B. Baseom, Jonathan Stamper. Thomas N. 
Ralston, and George W. Taylor. Benjamin T. 
Crouch and Hubbard H. Eavanaugh were elected 
Reserve Delegates. 

Dr. Bascom had been appointed at the previous 
session to deliver an address on Education, but was 



* To those who think the temperance movement has effected 
but little allow us to say that at this period ardent spirits en- 
tered into every gathering. We heard a minister, in 

1837, preach a funeral-sermon at a private house. On the 
sideboard was to be seen, during the service, a gallon-bottle 
of whisky. When the service closed the preacher stepped for- 
ward and poured some into a glass, and drank it. In a few 
moments the bottle was empty. We knew a gentleman, one 
evening, to send to the house of a deacon in a Church for a 
glass of whisky for a sick servant, knowing that he kept it. 
He replied that he had only one gallon, and there was prayer- 
meeting that night at his house, and he could not spare it. 
Such things would not now be tolerated. 



306 



Western Cavaliers. 



too feeble in health to perform the duty, and was 
excused by vote of the Conference. 

The preaching during the session was excellent. 
The sermon by Bishop Soule, on Sunday at eleven 
o'clock, from the text, "For all the promises of God 
in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of 
God by us," * was forcible and impressive. 

The deacons were ordained after the close of the 
sermon. While the ordination -services were in 
progress one of the seats in the gallery was broken. 
The entire audience was in commotion. " The 
house is falling ! " rang through the assembly, and 
the scene that ensued baffles description. A wild 
rush was made for the doors, some persons broke 
through the windows, several leaped among the ex- 
cited crowd from the gallery, while others hastily 
passed their children from the gallery to friends on 
the lower floor. The strong, commanding voice of 
Bishop Soule was heard above the confusion, assur- 
ing the people that there was no danger, and urging 
them to be calm ; yet the rush for the doors and win- 
dows continued until the Bishop and the preachers 
at the altar, with only a few others, were all that 
remained in the house. During the panic the ordi- 
nation-services were suspended, but, as soon as the 
excitement subsided, were resumed.f 

No sermon, however, during the session, attracted 
so much attention, or produced such a thrilling effect, 
as one preached by John H. Linn, a young preacher 
but recently transferred from the Baltimore Confer- 
ence. 



" >r 2 Cor. i. 20. f The author was ordained on that occasion. 



We stern Cavaliers. 



307 



The missionary meeting, on Saturday evening, 
was a splendid success. One thousand dollars was 
collected on the occasion. 

Aaron Moore, Seraiah S. Deering, Jesse Crom- 
well, John F. South, John Yance, John C. Baskett, 
Andrew M. Bailey, Samuel R. Turner, James I. 
George, and James J. Harrison, were admitted on 
trial. 

Wiley B. Murphy, Samuel Veach, John Waring, 
Martin L. Eacles, Jesse Sutton, George Switzer, 
James H, Brooking, and Esau Simmons, located. 

George W. Fagg, Joseph G. Ward, Stephen Har- 
ber, and Elijah Sutton, were placed on the superan- 
nuated list; while the names of William Atherton 
and Eli B. Crain were transferred to the effective 
roll. 

One preacher (Absalom D. Fox) had died during 
the year. 

Absalom D. Fox was born in Pennsylvania; but 
we have no record of the date of his birth. He was 
brought up chiefly in the State of Ohio, and joined 
the Methodist Episcopal Church in the city of Cin- 
cinnati, in 1816. For five y-ears he remained a local 
preacher, in which sphere he was laborious and use- 
ful. He was then admitted on trial into the Ohio 
Conference, where for ten years he was diligent and 
successful as a traveling preacher. 

In the autumn of 1835 he was transferred to the 
Kentucky Conference, and appointed to the Jeffer- 
son Circuit. Here, as in the State of Ohio, his 
ministry was crowned with success. In 1836 he 
was returned to the Jefferson Circuit, where he 



308 



Western Cavaliers. 



continued to preach with acceptability and useful- 
ness to the close of the year. Twelve years of itin- 
erant service had greatly impaired his health, which, 
together with pecuniary embarrassment, induced his 
location in 1837. 

Believing that it was his duty to devote himself 
exclusively to the work of the ministry, he offered 
himself to the Conference in 1838, and was read- 
mitted, and appointed to the Frankfort Station. 
His work, however, was done. After a severe and 
protracted illness, he ••fell asleep in Jesus,"' Novem- 
ber 2, 1838. 

During the brief period in which Mr. Fox was 
identified with the Church in Eentucky he gathered 
around him a circle of friends, who appreciated him 
for his excellent traits of character, his fervent piety, 
and his pure and spotless life. As a preacher, he 
was always acceptable, amiable, and modest in his 
deportment, and as a pastor industrious and emi- 
nently qualified for the duties which lay before him. 
One who knew him well said of him: '-Take him 
all in all — in his intellect and morals, his sincerity 
of heart and purity of life, and in the whole contour 
of his character, as a man. a Christian, and a minis- 
ter — we do not hope to find, in our whole lives, a 
more lovely example of the union and harmony of 
all the Christian graces." The memorial-sermon of 
Mr. Fox was preached by George W. Brush, at the 
request of the Conference. 

The missionary collections from the circuits and 
stations amounted to $4,581.85, one thousand dollars 
of which was collected at the Conference anniver- 



Western Cavaliers. 309 



sary. Carlisle Babbitt, who had brought to the 
Conference a larger collection than did any other 
preacher the previous year, again stands at the head 
of the list. He reported, from the Versailles Cir- 
cuit, §706.81. 

In looking over the appointments, we find Isaac 
Collard, William G-unn, Benjamin T. Crouch, Jona- 
than Stamper, George W. Taylor, Richard Corwine, 
and Richard D. IsTeale, in charge of the same Dis- 
tricts they had traveled the year before. John 
James, who had presided over the Bowling Green 
District, was appointed to the Covington District, 
in place of Thomas W. Chandler, who was sent to 
the Millersburg Circuit; while James King suc- 
ceeded Mr. James on the Bowling Green District. 
In the Augusta District, James "Ward was returned 
to the Fleming Circuit, and Josiah Whitaker to the 
Lewis Circuit. In the Lexington District, Absalom 
Woolliscroft, who had been supernumerary on the 
Burlington Circuit, was returned to it in an effective 
relation. In the Louisville District, Clinton Kelly 
was returned to the Jefferson Circuit, James D. 
Holding to the Newcastle Circuit, while Joseph D. 
Barnett was sent to the Brandenburg — a new circuit 
formed from a portion of the Hardinsburg, which 
he had traveled the previous year. In the Shelby- 
ville District, Williams B. Kavanaugh was reap- 
pointed to the Shelby Circuit, and Robinson E. 
Sidebottom to the Hodgenville Circuit. Turning 
to the Harrodsburg District, the name of Joel Peak 
again appears on the Madison Circuit, and that of 
Andrew Peace on the Somerset Circuit. In the 



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Bowling Green District, Thomas Waring was again 
sent to Greensburg, and Robert Fisk to Burksville. 
In the Hopkinsville District, Abram Long again 
travels the La Fayette Circuit, and Napoleon B. 
Lewis the Greenville Circuit. In the Barboursville 
District, William B. Landrum was again sent to the 
Louisa Circuit. 

The two years through which we have just passed 
were crowned with remarkable success. While we 
shall not be permitted the present year to record such 
extraordinary triumphs as those we have just wit- 
nessed, yet it will be our privilege to behold the 
Church still moving forward in the great work in 
which it was engaged. 

Calvin W. Lewis, who was a preacher of consid- 
erable promise, was sent to the Minerva Circuit. 
The pleasant village of Augusta was a leading ap- 
pointment in this circuit. The Augusta College — 
the oldest Methodist college in America — was lo- 
cated at this point. Joseph S. Tomlinson, Henry 
B. Bascom, Joseph M. Trimble, and Burr H. Mc- 
Cown, composed the Faculty. Methodism, not only 
in the village, but throughout the adjoining country, 
was largely indebted for the elevated position it oc- 
cupied to the ministry of these faithful men. At 
Minerva, Dover, Germantown, and Mount Zion, from 
time to time, they dispensed the word of life, and 
through their instrumentality many were brought 
to Christ. In Augusta, in connection with the pas- 
tor, they labored assiduously to build up the Church 
and to promote the cause of Gocl. 

On the 11th of January, 1840, a meeting was com- 



Western Cavaliers. 



311 



menced in Augusta, by Mr. Lewis, in which the 
Faculty participated, and at which one hundred 
persons joined the Church, twenty-two of whom 
were students in the college. The revival which 
commenced at this meeting extended to the country 
appointments, and before the first of March two 
hundred persons were added to the Church. The 
good work continued to spread. At Mount Zion — 
a popular preaching-place, four miles from Augusta 
— a meeting was held in May, at which Mr. Lewis 
was assisted by James Savage, a local preacher from 
Germantown, and Messrs. Trimble and McCown, 
where fifty-six persons joined the Church. At the 
close of the year the pastor reported three hundred 
additions. 

In the spring of 1838 a young preacher made his 
appearance in Kentucky, who was destined to bear 
a prominent part in the history of the Church and 
to occupy a commanding eminence for more than a 
generation. 

John H. Linn was born in Lewisburg, Virginia, 
February 22, 1812. From his early childhood he 
was impressed with the importance of religion, and 
was deeply convicted of his own sinful condition. 
Having been taught the fear of God from his in- 
fancy, it w r as no difficult task for him to call upon 
the Lord and plead for pardon. In the fourteenth 
year of his age he was happily converted. Brought 
up under Presbj^terian influence, he was naturally 
inclined to join that Church, but, for reasons satis- 
factory to himself, did not do so. In the fifteenth 
year of his age he made the acquaintance of some 



312 



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Methodist preachers, for whom he formed a warm 
attachment, and through their influence became a 
member of the Methodist Church. In 1836 he was 
admitted on trial into the Baltimore Conference, 
and was appointed, with Francis M. Mills, to the 
Franklin Circuit, with Xorval Wilson as his Pre- 
siding Elder. In 1837 his field of labor was the 
Lexington Circuit (with the same Presiding Elder), 
as the colleague of George W. Humphreys. His 
wife was Ann Eliza Woodard, daughter of W. H. 
Woodard, of Kentucky, a lady of superior intellect, 
of fervent piety, and uncompromising devotion to 
the Church. This influenced his transfer to Ken- 
tucky, in 1838. The death of the lamented Gibbons 
made a vacancy on the Georgetown Circuit, and the 
Church was so fortunate as to secure the appoint- 
ment of Mr. Linn for the remainder of the year. 

He was an excellent preacher from the time he 
entered the ministry. When the Conference held 
its session in Baltimore in 1837, at the close of his 
first year in the itinerant ministry, he was appointed 
to preach in the First Presbyterian Church, then 
under the pastoral care of Dr. Backus, the successor 
of Dr. JSTevins; he preached on "Rom. viii. 38, 39: 
"For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, 
nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, northings 
present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, 
nor an}^ other creature, shall be able to separate us 
from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our 
Lord." Our informant, who was present on the 
occasion, tells us that it was a masculine effort, and 
was so considered by the highly intelligent congre- 



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313 



gation to which it was delivered. It foreshadowed 
the high position which he was destined to occupy 
in the ministry. 

We remember his first appearance in the Confer- 
ence of 1838. He was young and buoyant — the 
very picture of health — and promised to the Church 
many years of labor and of usefulness. He came to 
the West asking no other favor than to be recognized 
as a brother and a fellow-laborer in the Master's 
vineyard — to work wherever the interest of the 
Church might demand. 

During the brief period he had labored on the 
Georgetown Circuit he not only won golden opin- 
ions from the people, but he was successful in win- 
ning souls to Christ. His commanding presence, 
his piety, his zeal, his devotion to the cause of the 
Redeemer, together with his extraordinary talents, 
not only rendered him useful in a high degree, but 
indicated the lofty eminence he would occupy in the 
coming years. 

At the Kentucky Conference of 1838 he was re- 
turned to the Georgetown Circuit, with George W. 
Simcoe as his colleague, where he spent a happy 
and prosperous year. 

We have already alluded to the sermon he 
preached during the session of the Conference in 
Russellville. It was on Thursday evening. The 
Methodist Church was crowded to overflowing, 
while many stood at the doors and windows. We 
saw him as he entered the house, and watched him 
as he walked down the aisle, in that careless man- 
ner which has always characterized him, his large 
14 



314 



Western Cavaliers. 



gray eye resting on the floor. He entered the pul- 
pit and knelt for a few minutes in silent prayer. 
The hymn, the public prayer, the "voluntary/ 5 fol- 
lowed each other in rapid succession. The text 
was, "Gather my saints together unto me."* In 
the commencement of the sermon the preacher was 
considerably embarrassed. It was his first attempt 
to preach in the presence of the Kentucky Con- 
ference, and his words were tremblingly uttered. 
Bascom, Tomlinson, Stamper, Crouch, and Kava- 
naugh, who took rank with the ablest preachers in 
America, were present. A few introductory re- 
marks were offered, on the life and character of the 
sweet singer of Israel, and then he entered into a 
rigid examination of the word "saint/ 5 and what 
constitutes a saint in the sight of God. To become 
a saint requires, on the part of a sinner, repentance 
toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ ; 
while God, on his part, introduces him into his family 
by justification, regeneration, adoption, and sanc- 
tification. With great clearness he presented the 
difference between the justification and the regenera- 
tion of the sinner — the former merely changing the 
relation to God, while the latter changes his nature. 
Eegeneration, as he understood it to be taught in the 
Bible, was a thorough and radical work of grace in 
the heart, affecting all the component parts of the 
moral constitution; it ivas, emphatically, a new birth. 
A religion that would not accomplish this fails in 
its grand design, and is not of God. He, moreover, 
affirmed that the regeneration of the penitent be- 



* Psalm 1.5. 



Western Cavaliers. 315 



liever is accompanied by the witness of the Holy 
Spirit, bearing testimony with his spirit that he is 
born of God. " He that believeth on the Son of God 
hath the witness in himself."* "What is the wit- 
ness?" he inquired. "Let the apostle answer : ' The 
Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we 
are the children of Gocl.'f The necessity of such 
testimony cannot but be apparent to every thinking 
mind. Without it the Christian cannot be happy, 
because he cannot know whether he is in God's 
favor or under condemnation." In touching lan- 
guage be referred to the adoption of the regenerated 
person into the family of God, and then showed 
that Christ demands of all his followers that they 
"grow in grace," J and that they add to their "faith 
virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and to knowledge, 
temperance; and to temperance, patience; and to 
patience, godliness ; and to godliness, brotherly kind- 
ness; and to brotherly kindness, charity;" § and 
never stop until they have fathomed every depth and 
ascended every height of religious life, and are sanc- 
tified of God. The life of a Christian is an active 
life: "For we are laborers together with God"|| — 
not loiterers. l^o Christian, for a moment, dares 
pause amid the conquests he has won. If success 
has been achieved, if victories have been won, diffi- 
culties yet confront us in the great battle of life, and 
we dare not rest on our arms until every foe is con- 
quered. Then, and not until then, will our warfare 
be over, and our victory complete. 

* 1 John v. 10. f Rom. viii. 16. J 2 Pet, iii. 18. §2 Pet. i. 5-7. 
|| I Cor. iii. 9. 



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The peroration was thrilling beyond description. 
He had found man a sinner in the sight of God, 
exposed to almighty wrath; he had watched him as 
the Holy Spirit arrested him in his career to ruin; 
he had seen him as he resolved upon a better life, 
and when he " tasted the good word of God, and 
the powers of the world to come;" * he had followed 
him through every conflict in which he had been en- 
gaged, and beheld him when victory perched upon 
his banner; he watched his progress as he ascended 
the mountain-heights of religious life, until he was 
sanctified throughout spirit, and soul, and body, and 
become "pure even as He is pure;" and then, like a 
ripe shock ready to be gathered, he saw him as he 
entered the "valley of the shadow of death," f and 
listened to strains of rapture as they came back 
from the borders of the spirit-world; and he con- 
templated, too, the joys that awaited him amid the 
resplendent glories of the heavenly state. Time 
passes on; the w^orld becomes hoary with age, and 
its affairs are winding to their close; the judgment- 
day is at hand, and the nations are to be called from 
the sleep of ages, to hear their final sentence; but 
where are the saints of God? Scattered throughout 
the world; buried, many of them,, in unknown 
graves, their names have perished from the page of 
the world's memory; no hand of friendship may 
plant over their graves the evergreen — the emblem 
of immortality — nor the rose, to throw its fragrance 
on the balmy air; no tears of affection may mingle 
with the dust that conceals them from human view; 



* Heb. vi. 6. f Psalm xxiii. 4. 



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317 



but the ever- watchful eye of God has kept vigils 
over them, and not one, however humble and lowly 
in life, will be overlooked or forgotten. Hark! an 
angel is summoned to the presence of God, and 
Jehovah says to him: " Go, 6 gather my saints to- 
gether unto me/ Let them be the first to be raised 
from the dead!" " "Where shall I go?"' asks the 
angel. " Go to the cave in the field of Machpelah ; 
call up Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, and 
Jacob and Leah. Go to Mount ITebo, and find the 
grave of Moses, and bid him come back to life. Go 
to the city of David, and find the sepulcher of the 
son of Jesse, whose dulcet strains have chased sor- 
row from ten thousand hearts, and tell him, 6 1 am 
the resurrection and the life.'* Go to the graves 
of the prophets who foretold the advent of the 
woman's conquering Seed and the splendors of his 
reign, and tell them, ' Because I live, ye shall live 
also.'f Go to the imperial city, where Paul the 
apostle slumbers, and awaken him from the sleep of 
centuries. Go to Germany, and gather Luther and 
Melanchthon. Go to England, and lift the stone 
from the grave of John Wesley, and tell him to rise 
and throw off the fetters of the tomb. Call Coke 
from his coral bed, where he has slept so long. Go to 
Africa, and awaken Mellville B. Cox. Go to Amer- 
ica, and call Asbury from his tomb in the Monu- 
mental City, and McKendree from the forests of 
Tennessee. Wherever one of my saints sleeps, go 
and awake him, and 'gather him unto me.'" The 
angel continues his search, and from ocean and from 



*John xi. 25. f John xiv. 19. 



31S 



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earth tlie saints of God are rising; from every con- 
tinent, every island, and every isthmus, they are 
coming, in obedience to the summons of God. In 
his majestic flight through the world he overtakes 
Death, who tries to escape from his presence, and 
asks him whether a saint of God is confined within 
his empire. "Uo," he replies; "I have captured 
thousands, and carried them to my dominions, and 
bound them with fetters. I thought I had them 
secure, but they have broken the massive bars, 
abandoned the graves where they had slumbered 
long, and destroyed my power forever/*' He meets 
the prince of darkness, and inquires whether one 
saint can be found within his realm. **Xo, not one; 
but it is no fault of mine. I followed them through 
every step of life ; I offered ' them the world, with 
all its pageantry, and tinsel, and glare, if they would 
serve me; I pledged them riches, and pleasure, and 
fame; but their ears were deaf to my persuasions; I 
confronted them with difficulties, but they overcame 
them : I placed snares in their path, but they shunned 
them; I left no means unemployed to destroy them, 
but they eluded my grasp. 2so, not one is to be 
found in all the regions of woe." The work is done, 
and the angel returns to God. 

From the Conference at Eussellville Mr. Linn was 
appointed to Maysville, one of the most pleasant 
stations in the Conference. He entered upon his 
work as early after the close of the Conference as 
was practicable, meeting with a cordial reception 
from the Church and the community. During the 
winter his congregations were large and attentive, 



Western Cavaliers. 319 



and considerable interest was manifested amongst 
the people on the subject of religion. Early in Feb- 
ruary a meeting was commenced, in which he was 
assisted by Mr. Maftitt, during which one hundred 
and fifteen persons were added to the Church, and 
more than that number happily converted. The 
influence of this meeting extended through the en- 
tire community, leaving its benedictions on many a 
heart. Other Communions realized blessings from 
it. Under the ministry of Mr. Linn the white mem- 
bership in Maysville increased from one hundred 
and fifty to three hundred and five, and the colored 
from eighty-two to one hundred and sixty. 

While Mr. Linn was stationed in Maysville he 
made a visit to Georgetown, bis former field of labor. 
The Church he had served so faithfully and the 
community in which he had lived so pleasantly 
were glad to see him again. He was met by them 
with a cordiality and warmth that thrilled him with 
emotions he could not conceal. Among his numer- 
ous admirers was an old colored member of the 
Church. The preacher had left them the autumn 
before, well but plainly dressed. The warm hand 
and generous heart of friendship, in Maysville, had 
dressed him handsomely. Wrapped in a fine and 
costly cloak, he was met by the old man on the 
street, and accosted with, "Well, well, you sorter 
looked like Brother Linn ; but you gotten to be so 
much like a gentleman that I declare I did n't know 
you. I 's so glad to see you, ef you is a gentleman." 
We take leave of Mr. Linn here, but shall meet him 
before our volume closes. 



320 



W ester x Cavaliers. 



In the Germantown Circuit, George S. Savage 
was very successful. At a meeting at the Shannon 
Meeting-house, in Mason county, one hundred per- 
sons joined the Church. 

Daniel S. Barksdale was this year sent to the 
Fleming Circuit, with James Ward as his colleague. 
Mr. Barksdale was born May 14. 1812, in Wilson 
county, Tennessee. He was converted and joined 
the Church, under the ministry of Peter Akers, 
September 12. 1S2T. in Eussellville. Kentucky. In 
1834 he entered the Kentucky Conference, and was 
appointed, with John ETevius, to the Big Sandy Cir- 
cuit. In 1835 he was sent to the Bowling Green 
Circuit, with William S. Evans, and in 1836 to the 
Kentucky Mission. At the Conference of 1837 he 
was placed in charge of the Hardinsburg Circuit, and 
was sent to the Yellow Banks Circuit in 1838. In 
a previous chapter we have referred to the success 
which followed the ministry of Mr. Barksdale on 
the Hardinsburg and Yellow Banks Circuits, where 
he received several hundred persons into the Church. 
We succeeded him in both these fields, and had 
every opportunity to witness the result of his labors. 
From the time he entered the Conference until he 
located, at the close of this year, he labored with the 
zeal of a true minister of Christ, and was the hon- 
ored instrument in doing much good. Whether he 
preached along the waters of the Big Sandy or on 
the fertile lands of Warren county, whether he pro- 
claimed the tidings of salvation amid the valleys 
and mountains of South-eastern Kentucky or along 
the banks of the Ohio, his trumpet gave no uneer- 



We stern Cavaliers. 



321 



tain sound; he was beloved by the people he served, 
and many were brought to Christ through his labors. 
The fields he occupied not only extended over a large 
area of country, but the most of them were difficult 
to travel. From twenty to thirty appointments were 
to be filled every four weeks, besides preaching fre- 
quently at nights. These, together with long rides 
and the exposure incident to the life of a traveling 
preacher, during the period he was in the service, 
were too much for a delicate frame like his. The 
Fleming Circuit was the lightest charge he had ever 
filled, and yet it embraced nineteen appointments. 
Here, as elsewhere, he labored incessantly, and won 
souls to Christ. His health, however, became too 
much enfeebled during the year for him to longer 
prosecute the high and holy calling to which he had 
so faithfully devoted six years of his life. It cost 
him a hard struggle to retire from the itinerant 
ranks. He located at the close of this year. 

The Lewis Circuit increased from five hundred 
and five to seven hundred and forty-eight in the 
white membership, although there was a decrease 
of nine in the colored. Josiah AYhitaker, who had 
charge of this circuit, not only labored with dili- 
gence and zeal, but he gathered the rich fruit of his 
toil in the hundreds who, under his ministry, were 
brought to Christ. 

The work of grace which had begun in Newport, 
under the ministry of Robert Y. McReynolds the 
previous year, was still in progress. Wesley Gr. 
Montgomery, an educated and deeply pious young 
man, had been appointed to the station. As a 
14* 



322 



Western Cavaliers. 



preacher Mr. Montgomery did not take high rank, 
but as a pastor he excelled. During the winter 
thirty persons were added to the Church. 

Robert Y. McEeynolds was appointed to Coving- 
ton. He was born in Allen county, Kentucky, Jan- 
uary 20, 1809. He embraced religion September 17, 
1826, and joined the Methodist Episcopal Church 
in the following November. On the 23d of Decem- 
ber, 1827, he was licensed to exhort, and with no 
other authority he traveled the Christian Circuit, as 
the colleague of Blachley C. Wood, the remainder 
of the year. At a camp-meeting held in the neigh- 
borhood in which he was born and brought up, in 
August, 1828, he was licensed to preach and recom- 
mended to the Kentucky Conference for admission 
into the traveling connection. 

The first appointment of Mr. McEeynolds was to 
the Logan Circuit, as the junior preacher— John S. 
Barger being in charge. At the following Confer- 
ence he was sent to the Cynthiana Circuit, with 
Josiah Whitaker. In 1830 his field of labor was 
the Livingston Circuit, and in 1831 the Henderson 
Circuit. At the Conference of 1832 we find him on 
the Hartford Circuit, in 1833 on the Taylorsville 
Circuit, and in 1834 on the Jefferson Circuit. He 
traveled the Breckinridge Circuit in 1835, and the 
Louisa Circuit in 1836. We follow him to the 
Franklin Circuit in 1837, to Newport in 1838, and 
from thence to Covington in 1839, where we now 
find him. 

Possessed of a good mind, and entering the itin- 
erant field when he was only a youth, and influenced 



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323 



by the single motive of doing good, but few young 
men gave signs of greater promise than Robert Y. 
McReynolds. Whether performing the duties of 
an itinerant preacher on circuits or in stations, he 
was instrumental in the accomplishment of good. 
Under his ministry sinners were awakened, peni- 
tents converted, and the Church established. We 
first met with him in 1835, while he was in attend- 
ance on the Conference at Shelbyville, and just after 
he had closed his year on the Breckinridge Circuit. 
During an evening he spent at our home we listened 
with pleasure to his conversation on the subject of 
the life of an itinerant preacher, on which we be- 
lieved it our duty to enter. We then formed an 
attachment for him that increased through the pass- 
ing years. 

In Newport his ministry had been greatly blessed 
in the conversion of souls, but in Covington his work 
seemed to be confined to building up and strength- 
ening the Church. In that charge he made many 
friends, and left behind him the savor of a good 
name. 

The white membership in the Falmouth Circuit 
increased from five hundred and twenty-two to six 
hundred and thirty-eight, and the colored member- 
ship from thirty-two to forty. The preacher, Wil- 
liam C. McMahon, was zealous and useful. 

In the Cynthiana Circuit, under the ministry of 
George W. Merritt, the Church enjoyed great pros- 
perity. At a quarterly-meeting held in Cynthiana, 
under the faithful preaching of John James, the 
Presiding Elder, and George W. Merritt, thirty per- 



324 



Western Cavaliers. 



sons witnessed a good profession and joined the 
Church. Mr. Maffitt reached Cynthiana while the 
meeting was in progress, and entered into the work 
with the zeal for which he had elsewhere been dis- 
tinguished. The congregations, already large, were 
increased to overflowing, and the religious interest 
widened and spread all through the community. 
Two hundred persons professed to be converted, 
and joined the Church. The influence of the re- 
vival in Cynthiana extended to the adjacent coun- 
try, and many were brought from darkness to light. 
It reached the Leesburg Circuit — the preacher in 
charge being George W. Simcoe — and more than 
one hundred souls turned away from a life of sin to 
a life of purity and holiness. In the Paris Circuit, 
where John C. Hardy preached the gospel, a deep 
religious feeling prevailed; while in the Sharpsburg 
Circuit Thomas Demoss received eighty-two persons 
into the Church. 

"While such displays of divine power were mani- 
fested in the Covington District, rejoicing and praise 
were heard in almost every portion of the Lexing- 
ton District. In the city of Lexington the Church 
grew stronger, under the pastoral care of George 
"W. Brush; while in the Winchester Circuit, under 
the ministry of Carlisle Babbitt, the membership 
was largely increased. In Frankfort, Peter Taylor 
had seasons of refreshing; and on the Georgetown 
Circuit, under the ministry of Hartwell J. Perry 
and Thomas E. Malone, the iliembership was nearly 
doubled. In the Burlington and Carrollton Cir- 
cuits — the former served by Absalom Woolliscroft 



We stern Cavaliers. 



325 



and Thomas Hall, and the latter by James C. Crow 
and James L George— many were brought to Christ. 
No charge in the Lexington District was more 
greatly blessed than the Versailles Circuit. Under 
the ministry of Edwin Roberts, the zealous pastor, 
twenty-nine persons joined the Church at Nicholas- 
ville, where the first quarterly-meeting was held, 
and three hundred were added to the Church before 
the close of the year. 

"While the Mount Sterling Circuit reports a much 
smaller membership than it had the previous year, 
yet there were but few charges in the District that 
shared more largely in revival influence than this. 
John W. Riggin, a faithful and true man, was the 
preacher, and under his ministry many were brought 
from darkness to light. 

The labors of Mr. Maffitt in Kentucky, which had 
extended through more than two years, and had 
been so signally blessed, were about to terminate. 
The last meeting at which he was present in the 
State was held in Mount Sterling, commencing Au- 
gust 1, 1840. Here, as everywhere else he had la- 
bored, sinners were awakened, penitents converted, 
and the Church revived. At the close of the meet- 
ing ninety-two persons had witnessed a good con- 
fession. A camp-meeting was held at Poynter's 
Camp-ground, immediately after the close of the 
meeting in Mount Sterling, at which William G-unn, 
Carlisle Babbitt, and Thomas Demoss, were present. 
Here thirty-two persons professed to find " the peace 
which passeth all understanding." 

The question has often been asked. Why was it 



326 



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Cavaliers. 



that the labors of John Newland Maffitt were so 
blessed that everywhere he preached the gospel the 
work of God was revived? 

Mr. Maffitt was a man of one work. The glory of 
God and the salvation of sinners occupied all his 
thoughts and controlled all his actions. He seemed 
to think of nothing else. We have very frequently 
known him, after preaching in the morning, to de- 
vote the afternoon to religious conversation with 
seekers of religion, and then preach again in the 
evening, and afterward spend hours at the altar, and 
then retire late — not yet to sleep, but to think of 
the best method of achieving success. We have 
known him to rise frequently during the night, to 
pen a thought that had occurred to his mind, or to 
kneel in prayer before God. His responsibilities to 
God and his duty to man absorbed every thought. 
Wherever he labored he not only expected, but re- 
solved, to succeed, and his boldness and zeal inspired 
the confidence of the members of the Church, whom 
he expected and required to cooperate with him. He 
labored, too, with an energy that never flagged. He 
appeared never to grow weary. As long as a peni- 
tent sinner would remain at the altar Mr. Maffitt 
was willing to stay with him, and sing, and pray, 
and instruct him. He was no respecter of persons. 
Whether sin was to be found in high or in low 
places, in the most scathing manner he rebuked it. 
He divested it of all its covering, and exposed it in 
all its hideousness. He was faithful to God and 
earnest in saving the souls of his fellow-men. 

It does not come within the scope of the present 



Western Cavaliers. 



327 



volume to follow the career of Mr. Maffitt farther; 
yet it will not be improper to trace his history to the 
close of his life. 

In 1841 he was elected Chaplain of the lower 
house of Congress. He discharged the duties of 
this position w T ith great credit to himself and with 
benefit to his hearers. In the capital of the nation 
he lost none of the reputation he had won in the 
West. 

After the close of the term for which he was 
elected he left Washington City, and visited Rich- 
mond, Virginia, and other cities in the North and 
East, where the same success crowned his ministry 
as in Lexington, Louisville, and other cities in Ken- 
tucky. " His residence was mainly in the Atlantic 
cities, until 1847. About this period he was married 
to Miss Pierce, of Brooklyn, New York, his first 
wife having died in Galveston, Texas. As some 
complaints were made against him, and his Church- 
relations falling into an informal state, he was con- 
sidered as having withdrawn his membership from 
the Church in New York. Retiring to Arkansas, 
he joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 
and was licensed to preach de novo" He remained 
in Arkansas about two years, when he left that State 
for the Gulf cities. 

In the spring of 1850 we find him carrying on a 
religious meeting in a small chapel of a suburban 
village of Mobile, Alabama. This was the last meet- 
ing he conducted. 

No man in the American ministry, so far as we 
have known, has ever been so relentlessly persecuted 



328 



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as John Newland Maffitt. We are not surprised at 
tins. The Divine Master was persecuted before him. 
The bold and fearless attacks made on vice by Mr. 
Maffitt, if they failed to persuade the ungodly to 
abandon their evil habits, were well calculated to 
embitter and array them against him. His success, 
too. in the great work that occupied his life had a 
tendency to provoke the wrath of the enemies of 
the Church. Every thing that hate, and envy, and 
malice could invent, to impair his influence and to 
break his power, was said and done: yet, through 
more than thirty years in which he preached the 
gospel of Christ, he maintained an unsullied reputa- 
tion as a Christian, not a single stain ever fastening 
itself on his escutcheon. Confiding too easily in 
pretended friendships, we are not surprised that he 
was often betrayed; yet no betrayal ever cast a 
blight on his fair name. Malignant, and bitter, and 
busy, as was the tongue of calumny, he cherished no 
malice against his enemies, but to all their charges 
his reply was, "God, forgive them!' 7 Guileless in 
heart, and conscious of the rectitude of his inten- 
tions, he ought to have borne up under the heartless 
persecutions that were leveled against him to the 
last. Xo man knew the human heart — its depravity 
and corruption — better than he did, and he ought 
not to have allowed his spirit to be broken by the 
continued assaults of his persecutors. The attacks 
upon his reputation culminated in an article which 
appeared on Thursday before his death in a paper 
published in Mobile, copied from the Police Gazette, 
of New York. He had borne much, but his sensi- 



Western Cavaliers. 



329 



tive nature could bear no more. From the appear- 
ance of this article lie was greatly disturbed, and 
never slept. His sister — Mrs. Ellen Ball, the wife 
of Dr. Ball, whom he was visiting — was boarding 
with Mrs. Ballasette, where Mr. Maffitt spent his 
time. Walking the floor of Mrs. Ball's room, he 
frequently pressed his heart, exclaiming, " Ellen, 
they have broken my heart!" and again, "My poor 
heart is breaking!" 

Upon the appearance of the article already re- 
ferred to, Mr. Maffitt was advised to avenge himself. 
To this advice he replied that " such an act would 
be inconsistent with Christian life," and quoted, 
" Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord." 
On Monday morning he went to Toulminville — a 
suburban village of Mobile — to the house of Major 
Reuben Chamberlain. " Napoleon's Grave " was his 
favorite piece of music. Between six and seven 
o'clock p.m., while Miss Chamberlain was playing 
this piece, Mr. Maffitt left the parlor and went out 
on the gallery, groaning heavily. He, however, im- 
mediately returned to the hall, and fell prostrate. 
He was lifted up and carried to a sofa. While lying 

there, Mrs. W said to him, "Your enemies will 

outdo you." He replied, "They will," and prayed, 
"Lord, have mercy on them, and forgive them!" 

Mrs. W asked him if he could forgive them. 

He replied, "Yes, from the bottom of my heart; 
for if I forgive not, how can I expect forgiveness?" 
Medical attention was procured without delay. Dr. 
E. P. Gaines administered an opiate, and forbade his 
talking. He spoke but little afterward, and died, 



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W e si e r n Cavaliers. 



May 28, 1850, at fifteen minutes past two a.m., saying, 
" They have broken my heart!" He was buried in 
Magnolia Cemetery, where he still sleeps. No mar- 
ble marks the spot. His grave is simply bricked 
over. 

It might be thought that after the death of Mr. 
Maffitt the tongue of slander would be hushed. But, 
no ; more busy than before, it continued to follow 
him, charo'ino' that he had died bv his own hand — 
that poison had caused his death. This suspicion, 
which nothing but the most malignant hate could 
have suggested, soon found its way into the press, 
and spread throughout the country. It was due the 
reputation of the distinguished dead, and it was due 
the cause of the Master he had so faithfully served, 
that this slander should be arrested. After consult- 
ing with his sister, Mrs. Ball, Dr. Jefferson Hamilton 
and the Rev. W. H. Milburn, stationed preachers 
in the city of Mobile, determined that a post mortem 
examination should be had, under the ablest medical 
supervision. This examination silenced at once and 
forever the heartless calumny. It revealed a broken 
heart. On one side of it there were three holes; 
the other side had literally burst* They had broken 
his heart. Xoble man! he has entered into the rest 
that " remain eth to the people of God," and to-day 
shares its bliss with the many thousands who were 
brought to Christ through his ministry. " Sleep on, 
and take thy rest." In thine own beautiful lan- 

*Dr. Xott, who took out the heart, kept it for several weeks, 
and then sent it to the Medical Faculty, in Xew Orleans, for 
examination. It was returned and deposited in the grave 



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331 



guage: "The sorrowful bosom heaves no more, the 
tears are dried up in their fountain, the aching head 
is at rest, and the stormy waves of earthly tribula- 
tion roll unheeded over the place of graves. The 
voice of thunders shall not awake thee; the loud 
cry of the elements, the winds, the waves, nor even 
the giant tread of the earthquake, shall be able to 
cause an inquietude in the chambers where thou 
dost sleep/' 7 God watches thy dust, and will at last 
gather it unto himself. 

The Louisville District had been blessed the year 
before to a greater extent than any other District in 
the Conference. The work of the Church for the 
present year looked to the care of the hundreds who 
had been brought into the fold rather than to new 
accessions. In several portions of the District, how- 
ever, there were gracious revivals of religion, in 
which many were added to the Church. 

Thomas X. Ralston, Henry H". Vandyke, and 
William Atherton, were sent to the Fourth-street 
Station, which included a small frame church on 
Eighth street. The health of Mr. Vandyke was 
feeble; indeed, he was rapidly hastening to the 
grave, and could not be relied on for any service. 
The membership of this charge amounted to seven 
hundred and live whites and seven hundred and six 
colored. The colored Churches, although under the 
supervision of the preachers appointed to Fourth- 
street, were supplied with preachers of their own 
color. This large membership, five hundred of 
whom were new members, having been brought 
into the Church under the ministry of Mr. Maffitt 



332 



We s t e r n Cavaliers. 



the previous year, required much care and atten- 
tion. Mr. Ralston and Mr. Atherton were diligent 
in their work. Their labor during the winter was 
excessive. Revival influence existed all the time, 
while prayer or experience meetings were held 
nearly every evening. By the first of February 
thirty persons joined the Church. In the prosecu- 
tion of their work they were assisted by a noble 
membership — Hasbrook, Howe, Glassford, Evans. 
Kendrick, Buckles, and old Sister New — while Dr. 
Bright and Dr. Pirtle, worthy local preachers, were 
always ready to lend a helping hand. The Brook- 
street Church had for their pastor Joseph Marsee, a 
good preacher and a true man. "While no revival 
blessed his labors in this station, the Church, under 
his ministry, continued in a prosperous and healthy 
state. 

In the Jefferson Circuit there were refreshing 
times. At a camp-meeting held at Hughes's Camp- 
ground, six miles below Louisville, commencing May 
20, conducted by Moses Levi, the senior preacher, 
about forty persons -passed from death unto life.*' 
It was our privilege to be present at that meeting, 
and to witness the progress of the good work. The 
Newcastle Circuit, in which the year before several 
hundred persons had joined the Church under the 
ministry of James D. Holding and William H. 
Anderson, continued to increase in numbers and in- 
fluence under the labors of James D. Holding, who 
was returned to this field, and William McD. Abbett, 
the junior preacher. While the Elizabethtown Cir- 
cuit shows a decrease in the membership, when com- 



Western Cavaliers. 



pared with the former year, yet the ministry of 
Gilby Kelly was greatly blessed. The apparent de- 
crease in the membership was the result of a change 
in the circuit, by which some of the Societies w T ere 
transferred to another charge. Besides these sea- 
sons of prosperity, seventy-three persons became 
members of the Church at a camp-meeting held at 
Cedar Creek, late in August, or early in September. 

Grilby Kelly was born in Pulaski county, Ken- 
tucky, in 1812. His father and mother were dis- 
tinguished for their fervent piety and devotion to 
the Methodist Church, of which they were zealous 
members. We do not know in what year he em- 
braced religion, but when only twenty years of 
age he was admitted on trial by the Kentucky Con- 
ference, which held its session in Harroclsburg in 
1882. His first appointment was to the Hinckstone 
Circuit, as the colleague of Daniel H. Tevis. In 
1833 he was sent to the Big Sandy Circuit, with 
Thomas Hall, and in 1834 to Port William. His 
appointment in 1835 was to the Danville Circuit, 
and in 1836 to the Somerset Circuit, where he was 
brought up and began his ministry. At the Con- 
ference of 1837 he was appointed to the Hopkins- 
ville Circuit, where he remained for two years; and 
in 1839 w r e find him on the Elizabethtown Circuit. 

Being wholly uneducated at the time of entering 
the Conference, he resolved to acquire, by patient 
and untiring study, that which had been denied him 
in his childhood and youth. With an intellect far 
above mediocrity, he soon stored his mind with use- 
ful knowledge, and at an early age took rank, not 



334 



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only as a respectable scholar, but as an able minister, 
with the first preachers of his age in the Conference. 
Genial and warm-hearted, Gilby Kelly made friends 
in every circle in which he was thrown ; and zealous 
and active in the work of the ministry, he was be- 
loved and efficient in the several charges he filled. 
His devotion to books never inclined him to neglect 
his work; but, " instant in season, out of season," 
wherever duty called him, he was prompt to fulfill its 
requirements. As an example for young men who 
have entered the ministry without educational ad- 
vantages, we point with pleasure to Gilby Kelly, to 
show what may be accomplished by industry and 
perseverance. 

Albert H. Redford and Seraiah S. Deering were 
sent to the Yellow Banks Circuit. It was here that 
Daniel S. Barksdale and Richard Holding had ac- 
complished so much good the year before. The 
circuit had been left in a healthy condition, and a 
deep religious feeling existed throughout its bounds. 

Seraiah S. Deering, for so young a man, was an 
excellent preacher, as well as a good singer, and was 
powerful in exhortation. Throughout that large 
and interesting field he traveled, and prayed, and 
preached, and besought men to be reconciled to God. 
Sinners were everywhere impressed by the great 
truths he delivered, and in all portions of the cir- 
cuit he won souls to Christ. In Owensboro, in Yel- 
vington, in Hawesville, and throughout the country, 
he preached with a power that carried conviction to 
the hearts of the people. Catholic in spirit, deeply 
pious, and with a burning zeal, his soft and mellow 



We s tern Cavaliers. 



335 



voice, in touching and winning strains, sent forth 
its notes of warning and of comfort. Fifty persons 
joined the Church, chiefly under his ministry, be- 
fore the first of February. 

Between the Methodist and Baptist Churches in 
the town of Owensboro, during the previous year, 
there had been some difficulty, which resulted in an 
estrangement of feeling between these two Christian 
denominations, and the wound was not yet healed. 
Methodism was still rudely assailed, and its usages 
ridiculed. It was deemed proper, not only by the 
members of the Methodist Church, but by citizens 
of Owensboro, to invite Mr. Crouch, the Presiding 
Elder, to deliver a series of sermons on the subjects 
and mode of Christian Baptism. Xo man was better 
prepared for such a task than Benjamin T. Crouch. 
Familiar with this controversy, in all its ramifica- 
tions, no opponent could successfully meet him in 
debate. He accepted the invitation. The third 
quarterly-meeting for the circuit was to be held in 
Owensboro in the month of May, and Mr. Crouch 
fixed on that occasion as a proper time to preach on 
Baptism. 

On Saturday and Sunday he held his quarterly- 
meeting, and on Monday preached his first sermon 
on the points in controversy. Mr. John L. Waller,* 
an able debater, and the editor of the Western Re- 
corder — the leading Baptist journal in the West — 
was in attendance, together with quite a number of 

*Mr. Waller had not at this time been licensed to preach. 
He often delivered what he called " Lectures on Baptism," and 
was regarded as the ablest debater in that Church. 



336 



Western Cavaliers. 



Baptist preachers. Never was a community more 
thoroughly aroused. Old men, who had seldom 
been seen at a house of worship, were present, and 
many came from a distance to listen to this gifted 
minister of Christ. For three successive days, and 
on each occasion for three full hours, he held the 
vast assembly in breathless silence, while he set be- 
fore them the views he held on this question. 

The reply of Mr. Waller was in language bitter, 
in argument tame. 

The Methodist Church occupied, from this time, 
a more elevated plane in this lovely village. 

Jonathan Stamper was still in charge of the Shel- 
by ville District. The Shelbyville Station, under the 
ministry of Richard Tydings, continued to prosper. 
During the winter considerable interest was mani- 
fested on the subject of religion, and about fifty 
persons were received into the Church. 

The Taylorsville Circuit, Andrew J. McLaughlin 
and Elkanah Johnson being in charge, w^as greatly 
blessed during this year. Never were two preachers 
more dissimilar than these, and no two men labored 
more in harmony to advance the cause of the Re- 
deemer. If the former was more brilliant, the latter 
was more profound; if the one gained the affections 
and favor of the people sooner, the other held them 
longer; if Mr. McLaughlin was more successful in 
his appeals to sinners, Mr. Johnson was better quali- 
fied to build up and establish the Church. Side by 
side these two good men preached and labored, that 
sinners might be saved. Before the first of Janu- 
ary fifty persons joined the Church; and at a meet- 



Western Cavaliers. 



337 



ing held in Mount Washington, in July, there were 
forty additions to the Society in that village. 

William D. Matting and Andrew M. Bailey trav- 
eled the Salt River Circuit. Although Mr. Matting 
only entered the Conference in 1837, he had consid- 
erable experience as a preacher of the gospel. He 
came from the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, in 
which he had been a successful and popular preacher 
for several years. Mr. Bailey was quite a youth, 
being only eighteen years of age, without education 
and without experience. He had, however, been 
soundly converted to God, and could relate his 
Christian experience and recommend religion to 
others. The Salt River Circuit was one of the best 
in the Conference, and embraced several communi- 
ties distinguished for their culture and refinement. 
While Mr. Matting preached sermons that charmed 
the crowded audiences that heard him, young Bailey 
exhorted, and wept over the people, and pleaded 
with them to turn to God. Success crowned their 
labors: nearly three hundred persons were converted 
and added to the Church. One hundred joined at a 
meeting held in June. 

William M. Grubbs was stationed in Bardstown 
and Poplar Flat. At the latter place an interesting 
revival occurred in June, at which many were 
brought into the liberty of the children of God, 
while in Bardstown thirty had joined earlier in the 
year. 

Robinson E. Sidebottom was returned to the 
Hodgenville Circuit, where he had spent a pleasant 
and profitable year, and where prosperity again fol- 
15 



Western Cavaliers. 



lowed him. Allen Sears, in the Litchfield Circuit, 
witnessed displays of divine power, and "good 
times" were reported in the Lebanon Circuit, by 
Richard I. Dungan and Lorenzo I). Harlan. 

In the Harrodsburg District, the Irvine and Lib- 
erty Circuits are the only appointments in which 
an increase is reported in the white membership, 
and in these it is small; while Harrodsburg and 
Danville Station reports an increase only in the 
colored membership. At Harrodsburg, however, 
Richard Deering received sixty persons into the 
Church. 

The Bowling Green District was more prosperous 
than the Harrodsburg. In the Columbia Circuit, 
William M. Crawford, a preacher of decided pulpit 
ability, received into the Church one hundred per- 
sons; while Robert Fisk, on the Burksville Circuit, 
was equally successful. The Greensburg Circuit, 
through the instrumentality of Thomas Waring, 
was greatly blessed; and in the Grlasgow Circuit, 
under the ministry of Robert F. Turner and Aaron 
H. Rice, more than one hundred persons witnessed 
a good confession. The labors of Alanson C. De- 
witt were blessed in the Scottsville Circuit. 

In the Hopkinsville District, no charge enjoj^ed 
such prosperity as did the Princeton Circuit, under 
the labors of Robert G-. G-ardner and Samuel Turner. 
Early in the spring indications were favorable for a 
general revival. Before summer began the entire 
circuit was in a flame, and at the close of the year 
three hundred persons professed to be converted to 
G-od, and fully that number joined the Church. 



Western Cavaliers. 339 



Napoleon B. Lewis, who traveled the Greenville 
Circuit, had many seals to his ministry. 

The Barboursville District was greatly favored 
this year. In the Kentucky Mission, "good times " 
were reported by William James, the pastor; and 
in the Mount Pleasant Mission, Nathanael H. Lee 
was eminently successful. A small increase was re- 
ported in the Williamsburg, the Prestonsburg, the 
Louisa, and the Manchester Circuits. The Bar- 
boursville Circuit, under the ministry of Jedicliah 
Foster, a good and useful preacher, enjoyed great 
prosperity. The white membership in that charge 
was nearly doubled, and there was also an increase 
in the colored. 

The entire increase in the Conference was one 
thousand six hundred and eight white and six hun- 
dred and nineteen colored members. 

Thomas Smith, who had before traveled the Paris 
District, succeeded Thomas Joyner, who had spent 
four years in this new and interesting field. James 
R. Walker was reappointed to the Hickman Cir- 
cuit, with Jonathan White as his colleague. This 
year was more prosperous than the year before; re- 
vivals crowned the labors of these faithful men. 

John P. Stanfield entered the Tennessee Confer- 
ence in 1836, and traveled the Sevierville Circuit as 
the colleague of William M. McFemn. In 1837 he 
was the junior preacher on the Richland Circuit, 
and in 1838 was in charge of the Henderson Circuit. 
In 1839 we find him traveling the Paducah Circuit, 
where his ministry was greatly blessed: nearly three 
hundred persons were-added to the Church. 



340 



Western Cavaliers. 



The preacher on the Wadesboro Circuit was 
Daniel Mooney, who had just been admitted into 
the Conference. We are always glad to record the 
success of a young preacher, whose labors in the 
itinerant ranks have just begun. Mr. Mooney was 
instrumental in effecting much good: nearly two 
hundred persons joined the Church in his charge. 

The net increase in Kentucky this year was one 
thousand eight hundred and eighty-one white and six 
hundred colored members. 



Western Cavaliers. 



341 



CHAPTER IX. 



FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1840 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1841. 



He shall come down like showers 

Upon the fruitful earth, 
And love, joy, hope, like flowers, 

Spring in his path to birth : 
Before him on the mountains 

Shall peace the herald go; 
And righteousness in fountains 

From hill to valley flow. 



ISHOP MORRIS presided at the session of the 



1 J Kentucky Conference which met in Bards- 
town, October 14, 1841. 

Thomas N. Ralston was elected Secretary, and 
William M. Crawford Assistant Secretary. 

Jonathan Stamper, William M. Grubbs, and Hub- 
bard H. Kavanaugh, were appointed a Committee 
on Public Worship. 

Josiah Whitaker was appointed to take charge of 
the colored congregations. 

John Christian Harrison, Daniel S. Barksdale, and 
William B. Landrum, were appointed Stewards of 
the Conference. 

Robert Y. McReynolds, John Beatty, and Gilby 




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Western Cavaliers. 



Kelly, were appointed a Committee on Necessitous 
Cases. 

Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, Alanson C. Dewitt, and 
Peter Taylor, composed the Committee on the Book 
Concern in New York. 

Hartwell J. Perry and William H. Anderson were 
appointed a Committee on Post-offices. It was made 
the duty of this committee to furnish the Book 
Agents at New York with a list of the post-offices 
of the preachers. 

J ohn Tevis and George W. Brush were appointed 
a Committee on Memoirs. 

At the previous session of the Conference Henry 
B. Bascom was appointed by the Bishop to deliver, 
at this session, the annual address on Education; 
John James, on the Christian Ministry; and Richard 
Tydings, on Missions. 

Immediately after the appointment of the several 
committees, Dr. Bascom offered the following reso- 
lution, which was adopted: 

"Resolved, That the annual sermon, by appoint- 
ment of this body, on the subject of the Christian 
Ministry, be preached on Sabbath next, at three 
o'clock p.m.; that the sermon on Missions be 
preached on Sabbath night; and that the address 
on Education be delivered on Tuesday next, at ten 
o'clock a.m.; and that such be the standing arrange- 
ment hereafter." 

Benjamin T. Kavanaugh, of the Rock River Con- 
ference, Burr H. McCown, of the Ohio Conference, 
and Thomas Bottomley, who had but recently come 
to Kentucky, and had for several months filled a 



W E STERN C A V A L I E E S . 



343 



vacancy in the city of Louisville, were present, and 
were introduced to the Conference and invited to 
take seats within the bar. 

A communication on the subject of Common- 
school Education, from Bishop Smith, of the Prot- 
estant Episcopal Church, Superintendent of Public 
Instruction for the State of Kentucky, was received 
and read. This communication was referred to a 
special committee, consisting of Dr. Bascom, Hub- 
bard H. Kavanaugh, and Eichard Tydings. On 
Friday morning. October 16. they made the follow- 
ing report, which was adopted: 

"The committee, to whom was referred the com- 
munication from Bishop Smith, in relation to the 
subject of Common - school Instruction within the 
State of Kentucky, beg leave to report the follow- 
ing resolution for adoption by the Conference: 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, That we highly approve 
the object and action of the Legislature of Kentucky, 
in its recent attempt to establish an effective system 
of common-school instruction within the limits of 
this commonwealth : and we respectfully recommend 
that all our ministers and people, in every part of 
the State, extend their countenance and encourage- 
ment to the furtherance of the object of the Legis- 
lature and people of Kentucky, in the successful 
establishment of the excellent common-school .sys- 
tem now in course of organization throughout the 
State." 

Benjamin T. Crouch, the Presiding Elder of the 
Louisville District, presented a resolution from the 



344 



Western Cavaliers. 



Quarterly Conference of the Fourth -street Station, 
Louisville, in reference to Moses M. Henkle, a min- 
ister in the Methodist Protestant Church, recom- 
mending him to be received into the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, according to the provisions of 
the Discipline: 

"Whereas, regular and satisfactory evidence has 
been presented to this Conference that Moses M. 
Henkle has been ordained a deacon in the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, and an elder in the Methodist 
Protestant Church, and that he is a regularly ac- 
credited elder of said Methodist Protestant Church, 
in good standing; and whereas, he has signified his 
wish to attach himself to the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, and his willingness to conform and submit 
to the regulations thereof; therefore, 

"Resolved, That this Conference approve his re- 
ception by the proper authorities of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, on his compliance with the requi- 
sitions of the Discipline, in such cases made and 
provided; and that we are prepared, on such com- 
pliance, to receive him with Christian confidence 
and affection as a minister of our Church. 

"William Farquar, 
"William 1ST. Meriwether. 

" The above preamble and resolution were unan- 
imously adopted by the Quarterly Conference for 
Fourth-street Station, Louisville, Kentucky, Octo- 
ber 5, 1840. B. T. Crouch, Presiding Elder. 

" William Kendall, Recording Steward" 

Mr. Henkle had entered the itinerant ministry 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1819, but 



Western Cavaliers. 



345 



located after traveling three years. At a later pe- 
riod lie entered the Methodist Protestant Church, 
in which his commanding talents and fervent zeal 
soon made him a leader. No preacher in that 
Communion enjoyed the confidence of this branch 
of Methodism to a greater extent than did Mr. 
Henkle. Convinced, however, that he had made a 
mistake in the step he had taken, he resolved to 
retrace it and return to the fold whence he had 
gone out. 

It was " moved that Brother Henkle have the 
right to exercise the office of an elder in the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church" — which motion prevailed. 
It only remained for Mr. Henkle to take the vows 
of office, as prescribed in the Book of Discipline, 
which he immediately proceeded to do. 

The following resolutions were offered by Messrs. 
Stamper and Ty dings, and adopted : 

"1. Resolved, That, with due respect, we accept 
the copyright of Brother M. Jamieson/s book on 
Baptism, as a present offered to this Conference. 

u 2. Resolved, That this Conference present said 
copyright to the Western Book Concern, and re- 
quest the Concern to publish the same." 

Prom the time that Campbellism made its first 
appearance, Kentucky had been one of the most 
prominent fields in which it had operated. The 
Baptist Church — one of the largest and most influ- 
ential denominations — was most affected by its 
teachings. In many instances Churches were di- 
vided, the larger number following the fortunes of 
Alexander Campbell, the founder and leader of the 
15* 



346 



Western Cavaliers. 



new order. Deriding experimental religion, and 
offering salvation on terms more congenial to human 
nature than those laid down in the Bible, it met 
with sympathy and favor in many communities. 
"With truth enough in the system to conceal its er- 
rors, many persons had been persuaded to embrace 
it, and, accepting it as true, became its zealous de- 
fenders. Christians of all denominations regarded it 
with disfavor, because of its pernicious effects on 
vital Christianity. In the Kentucky Conference 
were several preachers who attacked this system 
with signal ability, among whom Edward Stevenson 
was prominent. No one, however, was so fearless 
in striking at its strongholds as Milton Jamieson. 
He was a preacher of extraordinary ability, and in 
the struggle with Campbellism he proved himself 
a giant. He challenged the ablest teachers of the 
Reformation (so-called) to a discussion of the doc- 
trines they taught, and laid bare to public view the 
errors and dangerous tendencies of the system. 
Fully acquainted with every dogma they held, his 
sermons exerted an influence, in every community 
in which he preached, toward arresting the tide of 
error and in planting more firmly the cardinal 
truths of Christianity. In addition to the sermons 
he preached against Campbellism, Mr. Jamieson 
became the author of a small book on Baptism, 
generally known as the "Blue Pill" * which was 
distributed largely throughout the State. It was 
an able exposure of the errors it attacked, as well 
as a potent defender of the truth. It was the copy- 
*It was bound in blue muslin. 



Western Cavaliers. 



347 



right of this book which he presented to the Con- 
ference. 

The sermons on the Ministry and on Missions 
were preached on Sunday — the former, by John 
James, at three o'clock, and the latter, by Richard 
Tydings, at seven o'clock. Mr. James entertained 
a large audience and the members of the Conference 
with an able sermon on the character and responsi- 
bility of the Christian ministry. The sermon by 
Mr. Tydings, on the spread of the gospel and the 
final triumphs of the cross, was equally instructive 
to the large assembly which heard him. 

The address on Education, delivered by Dr. Bas- 
com on Tuesday at ten o'clock, was alike worthy 
of the distinguished preacher and the occasion. 

During a session of the Conference, held in the 
afternoon of the same day, Hubbard H. Kavanaugh 
offered the following resolution, wdiich was adopted 
by a rising vote: 

"Resolved, That Brother H. B. Bascom be, and he 
is hereby, most respectfully requested to furnish this 
Conference w T ith a copy of the very learned, able, 
and eloquent address on Education which he deliv- 
ered before this Conference this morning." 

At the previous session of the Conference a reso- 
lution was adopted, requesting the members of the 
Church throughout the commonwealth of Ken- 
tucky to " memorialize the Legislature, asking for a 
change in the License Law, as it regards the sale of 
ardent spirits." From every part of the State me- 
morials looking to the suppression of the evil of 
intemperance had been placed before the Legisla- 



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ture, and received the most careful consideration of 
that body. 

At this session of the Conference Mr. Linn offered 
the following resolution, which was adopted: 

"Hesolved, That the very kind and respectful at- 
tention which was paid by the Legislature of this 
commonwealth to the memorials and petitions to 
procure the repeal of the License Law, as it regards 
the sale of ardent spirits, furnishes the friends of 
temperance grounds of encouragement, and calls 
most solemnly for a renewal of effort; and that we 
do more earnestly than ever recommend to the 
people within our respective charges the propriety 
and necessity of again memorializing the Legisla- 
ture on this subject, praying a revision of the present 
License Law, and such a change in the whole system 
as no longer to permit tippling under sanction and 
countenance of law." 

The amount of money reported at this Conference 
for missionary purposes was only two thousand two 
hundred and, eighty-five dollars and thirty-one cents, 
against four thousand five hundred and eighty-one dol- 
lars and eighty-five cents the former year. The col- 
lection at the anniversary meeting, in Bardstown, 
was five hundred dollars; besides, the largest amount 
— two hundred and ninety-four dollars and twenty-six 
cents — was sent from the Fourth - street Station, 
Louisville. Several large and wealthy Churches 
made no report. 

The Preachers' Aid Society was organized at this 
session of the Conference. The object of this Society 
was to render aid to superannuated preachers, and to 



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349 



the widows and orphans of preachers who had died 
in the work. The Society was placed under the su- 
pervision of a Board of Managers, consisting of 
Henry B. Bascora, Jonathan Stamper, Hubbard H. 
Kavanaugh, William Gunn, Isaac Collarcl, Richard 
Ty dings, Benjamin T. Crouch, John Tevis, George 
W. Taylor, and Richard Corwine. The following 
persons were elected Lay, or Local, Managers : Lewis 
Parker, of Wayne county; John Armstrong, of 
Maysville; David Heran, of Louisville; F. A. Sav- 
age, of Minerva; Charles Campbell, of Hopkins 
county. The officers were: John Armstrong, Presi- 
dent; Benjamin T. Crouch, First Vice-president; 
Jonathan Stamper, Second Vice-president; Henry 
B. Bascom, Treasurer; F. A. Savage, Secretary. 

The preaching during the session of the Confer- 
ence was good. William H. Anderson preached a 
sermon on Thursday afternoon, in the Methodist 
Church, from the text, "But grow in grace, and in 
the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus 
Christ/' * which was listened to with rapt attention 
by a large audience; and on Friday evening, in the 
same house, many hearts were touched while Edwin 
Roberts preached from the passage, "Even the mys- 
tery which hath been hid from ages and from gen- 
erations, but now is made manifest to his saints : to 
whom God would make known what is the riches 
of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; 
which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." f 

Nineteen preachers were admitted on trial at this 
session: Drummond Welburn, Francis M. English, 



*2 Pet, iii. 18. fCol. i. 26, 27. 



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Fielding Bell, Henry F. Garey, Jolm Atkinson, 
James E. Nix, James S. Woolls, Leroy C. Danley, 
Charles Hendrickson, George W. Crumbaugh, Zach- 
ariah M. Taylor, William Reed, William D. Trainer, 
William D. Minga, James I. Ferree, John Miller, 
William C. Atmore, William R. Price, and Thomas 
Bottomley. 

Of those who entered the service the year before, 
the name of James J. Harrison is the only one that 
disappears from the roll. 

George S. Gatewood, William B. Maxey, Daniel 
S. Barksdale, Robert F. Turner, Matthew K Lasley, 
Solomon Pope, Henry E. Pilcher, John C. Hardy, 
and John Nevius, located. 

Messrs. Gatewood, Maxey, Lasley, Pilcher, Hardy, 
and ISTevius, reentered the itinerant ranks at a later 
period — some of them in other Conferences. In the 
fields they had occupied their labors were greatly 
blessed, and many were added to the Church under 
their ministry. In a local sphere Messrs. Barksdale, 
Turner, and Pope, continued to labor efficiently and 
usefully. 

George McNelly and Elijah M. Bosley died during 
the year — the former a veteran in the ranks, and the 
latter a young man who had not reached the me- 
ridian of life. 

George McNelly was born in Sumner (then Da- 
vidson) county, Tennessee, February 1, 1793. We 
regret that we have no record of the time he pro- 
fessed religion and became a member of the Church. 
As early as 1814 we find his name among those who 
were admitted on trial into the Tennessee Confer- 



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351 



ence, and traveling the Hartford and Breckinridge 
Circuit, as the colleague of William F. King, having 
the eccentric Peter Cartwright as his Presiding 
Elder. In 1815 his appointment was the Red River 
Circuit, lying partly in the State of Tennessee. His 
field of labor the following year was the Barren 
Circuit, which spread over a vast extent of territory. 
In 1817 he was sent to the Goose Creek Circuit, on 
which he remained for two years. At the Confer- 
ence of 1819 he was again appointed to the Red 
River Circuit, on which he had formerly traveled. 

The ministry of Mr. MoN"elly during the six years 
which closed with the Conference of 1820 had been 
spent on extensive fields. His circuits included from 
twenty-five to thirty-five appointments, which had 
to be filled every four weeks. Much of the country 
over which he passed was rough, and the travel diffi- 
cult. Exposed to every variety of weather, and with 
a delicate constitution at best, we are not surprised 
that in 1820 he proposed to retire from the itinerant 
ranks, that he might repair his health and be bet- 
ter qualified to perform the duties of a traveling 
preacher. He remained in the local ranks, however, 
but a single year; for in 1821 we find him on the 
Fountain Head Circuit, in the Kentucky Conference, 
which was formed in 1820, prosecuting his ministry 
with fervor and zeal. The following year he travels 
the Red River Circuit, where he had previously la- 
bored, and in 1823 the Christian Circuit, where he 
remains for two years. At the Conference of 1825 
his appointment was the Hartford Circuit, where he 
spent two years, and where he witnessed the fruits 



352 



Western Cavaliers. 



of his ministry. At tlie Conference of 1827 he was 
appointed to the Green River District, where he re- 
mained for four years. His labors on the Green 
River District so far impaired his health that in 
1831 he requested a superannuated relation, which 
he continued to sustain until 1836. Believing his 
health was sufficiently restored to resume the active 
duties of the ministry, he once more reported him- 
self as able to perform the work of a pastor, and 
was stationed at Danville and Harrodsburo:. The 
pastoral work, however, was more than equal to his 
wasting strength, and the following year he was ap- 
pointed Agent for Augusta College. In 1838 he 
was again placed on the superannuated list, where 
he remained until God called him home. He died 
on Tuesday. April 14. 1810. 

Mr. McNelly was an acceptable preacher, a con- 
sistent Christian, and faithful in the discharge of 
his duties. His end was peaceful. 

Elijah M. Bosley was born in Washington county, 
Kentucky. Xovember 24, 1811. His parents were 
Gideon and Elizabeth Bosley. and to his mother, 
who was distinguished for her fervent piety and su- 
perior intellect, he was indebted, under God. for the 
position he occupied as a Christian and a preacher 
of the gospel. When only a child he gave his heart 
to God. and at a camp-meeting held at Pleasant Run 
Camp-ground, in Washington county, he realized a 
sense of the pardoning love of Christ. The change 
was so gradual that at first he only tasted the heal- 
ing stream; but soon his heart was filled with un- 
bounded joy and love. From the time of his con- 



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353 



version until God called him home, his confidence 
never wavered, and never for a moment did he lose 
sight of his inheritance in the skies. No son, per- 
haps, ever gladdened the hearts of parents more 
than did Elijah Madison Bosley. Obedient in all 
things, he devoted himself to their comfort, and 
studied, with true filial tenderness, their happiness 
in every act of his life. 

Called of God to preach the gospel, he would 
have shrunk from so responsible a work; but the 
conviction that the path of duty lay in this direc- 
tion continually followed him, whether engaged in 
prayer or in the ordinary pursuits of life. 

In the summer of 1833 a camp-meeting was held 
at the Beech Fork Camp-ground, in Xelson county, 
at which Mr. Bosley was present. George ~W\ Tay- 
lor was the Presiding Elder. " Brother Bosley, you 
must preach to -night," said the Presiding Elder. 
"I have no license," was the prompt reply of the 
young man. i: I will give you a license," said Mr. 
Taylor, " and the laws of George AV. Taylor change 
not in reference to this appointment.' 7 Never hav- 
ing attempted to preach, and remarkable for his 
diffidence, he would have declined the appointment 
if made hy any authority less than that of George 
W. Taylor. What young preacher does not under- 
stand the stragglings of that hour? Retiring to the 
woods, alone with God, he knelt in prayer, and 
asked divine aid and comfort for the ordeal through 
which he was about to pass. His sermon was brief 
— too brief; it was a failure. Hardly had he left 
the stand, mortified and discouraged, when Mr. 



354 



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Taylor said to him, "Well, Elijah, you must try 
again, to-morrow." His second effort was an im- 
provement on the first. A few weeks later he was 
licensed to preach and recommended to the Annual 
Conference. 

In 1833 he was admitted on trial into the Ken- 
tucky Conference, and appointed to the Somerset 
Circuit. In 1834 he was sent to the Glasgow Cir- 
cuit, in 1835 to the Burksville Circuit, and in 1836 
to the Wayne Circuit. At the Conference of 1837 
his appointment was the Columbia Circuit, and in 
1838 the Winchester Circuit. The last charge to 
which he was appointed was the Hardinsburg Cir- 
cuit, in 1839. 

During the seven years that he proclaimed the 
gospel hundreds were brought to Christ through his 
ministry. Wherever he traveled the people loved 
him. While he studied to show himself approved 
"a workman that needeth not to be ashamed," he 
carried his preparations for the pulpit from his 
study to his closet, and there, for hours together, 
with prayers and tears, would ask the benediction 
of Heaven on his efforts to win souls to Christ. 
When he would sing by himself the songs of Zion, 
as he often did, every heart would be touched, and 
every eye be filled with tears. On these occasions 
there w r as a melody in his voice such as we have sel- 
dom heard. A distinguished member of the Louis- 
ville Conference, referring to Mr. Bosley in a letter 
to his brother, the Bev. Thomas GL Bosley, says: 
" When I was in deepest agony, sinking in the mire, 
where there was no standing, your brother was by 



We stern Cavaliers. 



355 



me, offering me the promises of the gospel; and 
when I was happily converted, he was singing, 

1 My brethren, I have found 
A land that doth abound.' 

I shall never forget,'* he adds, "the sweetness of 
that song, as sung by him; for he had a sweet voice, 
and he seemed to me more like an angel than a 
human being.' 5 * 

He closed his year's work on the Hardinsburg 
Circuit, and was on a visit to the family of his wife, 
in Barren county, when he was attacked with pneu- 
monia. It soon became evident that he could not 
survive. Looking back' upon a well-spent life, and 
then contemplating the glories that awaited him, 
among his last words we find a message to his fel- 
low-laborers: "Tell my brethren that the gospel I 
have preached to others sustains me while exchang- 
ing worlds, and that if I had a score of lives to 
spend all should be spent in preaching Christ cruci- 
fied." 

No purer man than Elijah M. Bosley was ever 
admitted into the Kentucky Conference, and none 
ever labored with greater earnestness and devotion 
than he did. His daily walk and conversation were 
such as became a minister of the gospel of Jesus 
Christ. No improper word ever fell from his lips, 
and no aberration from the path of virtue marked 
his life. He was in all things an example. During 
the seven years of his itinerancy he was the hon- 
ored instrument in the hands of God in doing much 



* Letter from the Rev. X. H. Lee, D.D. 



356 



Western Cavaliers. 



good. In every charge he filled he not only left be- 
hind him the savor of a good name, but "living 
epistles, to be read and known of all men." 

Our first acquaintance with Mr. Bosley was in 
April, 1840, only a short time previous to his death. 
It is true, we had seen him at one or two sessions 
of the Annual Conference, and were impressed with 
his small stature and his meekness and modesty; 
but nothing more than a formal introduction had 
passed between us. We had preceded him on the 
Hardinsburg Circuit, and were traveling on the Yel- 
low Banks, an adjoining circuit, when he attended 
our quarterly-meeting in Owensboro, at the time we 
have mentioned. On Saturday evening he preached 
in the court-house to a large congregation, from the 
text, " Who then can be saved? " * With a soft and 
slightly suppressed voice he entered upon the in- 
vestigation of his subject, his audience fearing that 
he might not be equal to the task before him. All 
apprehensions, however, were soon allayed. He 
showed himself to be " a workman that needed not 
to be ashamed." The sermon was not brilliant, but 
was pointed, clear, and forcible. There was in it 
no speculative theology, but it was replete with gos- 
pel truth, and carried conviction to many hearts. 
We never saw him afterward; but when we heard 
of his death we said, " We shall meet him again." 
He died in great peace, October 9, 1840. 

Joseph Marsee, who had entered the Kentucky 
Conference in 1827, was transferred this year to the 
Indiana Conference. He had traveled in Kentucky 



*Matt. xix. 25. 



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357 



for thirteen years, and discharged the duties of his 
high and holy office with fidelity. His fields of 
labor during this period were the Little Sandy, the 
Lebanon, the Glasgow, the Elizabeth, the Newcastle 
Circuits, the Newport and Covington, and the Lex- 
ington Stations, the Georgetown and Germantown 
Circuits, and the Mount Sterling (two years) and 
Brook-street, Louisville, Stations. In these several 
charges he was beloved and useful, and in them his 
memory is tenderly cherished. 

Thomas W. Chandler was transferred to the Illi- 
nois Conference. He entered the Conference at the 
same time with Mr. Marsee, and had traveled the 
Ohio, the Whitley, the Greenville, and the Wayne 
Circuits. At the Conference of 1831 he was sta- 
tioned in Bowling Green, and in 1832 in Hopkins- 
ville. We next find him on the Yellow Banks 
Circuit, and then stationed in Frankfort. In 1836 
he was sent to the Barboursville District, where he 
remained two years. In 1837 his field of labor w^as 
the Augusta District, and the following year the 
Covington. The last year he spent in Kentucky 
was on the Millersburg Circuit. Whether laboring 
amid mountain fastnesses or in the valleys of Ken- 
tucky, whether performing the duties of an itinerant 
on circuit, station, or District, he was always true 
and faithful. 

Andrew Peace, who was transferred this year to 
the Missouri Conference, became an itinerant in 
1828. His first appointment was to the Greenville 
Circuit, as the colleague of Lewis Parker. In 1829 
he was sent to the Yellow Banks Circuit, and in 



358 



Western Cavaliers. 



1830 his appointment was the Big Sandy Circuit. 
At the Conference of 1831 he was transferred to the 
Missouri Conference, where he traveled until 1836, 
when he located. At the Kentucky Conference of 
1837 he was readmitted and appointed to the Bar- 
boursville Mission, and in 1838 to the Somerset Cir- 
cuit, where he remained for two years. It is with 
pleasure that we bear testimony to the faithfulness 
with which Mr. Peace performed the duties assigned 
him. He was traveling on the Barboursville Mis- 
sion when we first made his acquaintance. Our 
fields of labor adjoining, we were often thrown to- 
gether. He was a true man, a good preacher, and 
zealous and useful wherever he labored. 

"Williams B. Kavanaugh and Robert Y. McRey- 
nolcls were transferred to the Rock River Conference, 
but afterward returned to Kentucky. 

A young preacher, who was present at this session 
of the Kentucky Conference, writes us the following 
interesting letter : 

" On Tuesday night I sat for the first time in a 
Conference-congregation, and heard its hymns of 
lofty cheer, and the hearty Aniens to its inspiring 
prayers. On Wednesday morning I was recognized 
by a few personal acquaintances, and with intense 
interest witnessed the gathering of about one hun- 
dred and twenty itinerant heroes — including elders, 
deacons, men on trial, and applicants for admission. 
Bishop Morris (then in the fullness of his strength) 
called the Conference to order, and, after religious 
worship, the roll was called by Thomas N". Ralston. 
S"eaHy one hundred answered to the roll-call, com- 



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359 



mencing with the name of James Ward, a veteran 
of the eighteenth century, then leaning on his staff 
in age and feebleness extreme, and ending with the 
class to which Albert H. Bedford belonged; yet it 
was seen that even such paths of glory as these were 
traveling lead but to the grave; for George McXelly 
and Elijah M. Bosley had responded to the roll-call 
above. Of these two, after George W. Taylor had 
preached their funeral-sermon to a congregation 
glowing with religious ecstasy, William Holman 
said that 6 though once, like their brethren, poor 
and homeless on earth, they now have homes near 
the Public Square in glory.' 

" When the regular business commenced I ven- 
tured within the bar of the Conference, and troubled 
a friend with many questions in reference to the 
more prominent members. 

" c Who is that tall, lean, Quaker-looking preacher, 
who has more to say than any one in the house, and 
who always replies to questions addressed to the 
whole body?' I asked. 

"'That is Benjamin T. Crouch, of the Louisville 
District, one of the most laborious men in the State,' 
was the answer. 

'"Who is that large old gentleman, with white 
hair and florid complexion? He speaks with great 
earnestness, although his sentences are not as clean- 
cut and clear as they might be.' 

" ' That is John James, of the Covington District.' 

" 4 That large, coarse -featured man, with such 
straight hair, I know. He is William Gunn, my 
own Presiding Elder.' 



360 Western Cavaliers. 



"'Yes/ said the brother at my side; 'he is about 
to read your recommendation, and you had better 
leave the house as soon as possible.' 

" Returning after a short period to the side of my 
friend, I listened to the Presiding Elder of the 
Louisville District, as he presented the recomenda- 
tions of nine candidates for admission on trial into 
the Conference. 

"Francis M. English is received without difficulty. 
There is no trouble with Fielding Bell; he is al- 
ready an able minister. The next elicits considera- 
ble discussion; but he is brilliant and admired, and 
is triumphantly admitted. He is not a preacher 
now, nor a member of the Church; is a distin- 
guished lawyer in an Eastern city, and fills a large 
space in public life — less happy, we think, than 
when he preached Jesus and persuaded sinners to 
be reconciled to Grod. The names of two others, 
long connected with the itinerancy, have passed 
under clouds, and are now local preachers in the 
Northern Church. Two others sweetly sleep in 
Jesus. The next case excited much discussion, and 
considerable opposition was expressed. Some one 
said that George W. Taylor, of the Harrodsburg 
District, knew something about this case. A plain 
farmer-looking man rose, with dignity, and, in a de- 
liberate and emphatic manner, said, ' He will never 
make an itinerant Methodist preacher/ Said my 
friend, 6 That settles it.' He was, however, received, 
and, after preaching two years, left the ministry of 
the Methodist Church, and became a Baptist minis- 
ter. Only one man was recommended from the 



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361 



Covington District. He was talented, useful, am- 
bitious; moved to the North-west; became a candi- 
date for Governor; took office at Washington ; went 
to ruin. A sallow-complexioned, stoop-shouldered, 
delicate old gentleman, the Presiding Elder of the 
Augusta District, read the recommendation of Wil- 
liam D. Minga. He was received, and was the first 
of our large class to escape to his heavenly home. 

"Bishop Morris announced that the Ohio Con- 
ference was flooded with preachers, and that he had 
advised several brethren to come to Kentucky, not 
by transfer, but with recommendations. William 
C. Atmore, John Miller, and William R. Price, were 
thus received. William D. Trainer, a Virginian, 
and Thomas Bottomley, from the territory of the 
Baltimore Conference, were also admitted. 

"Of the nineteen who then entered the Confer- 
ence only three are now on the effective list in our 
Church. One is effective in the M. E. Church, 
North. Several are superannuated. Some have so 
lived as to give sad emphasis to the words, ' Blessed 
are the dead which die in the Lord/ which we pro- 
nounced at the graves of Minga, Miller, Trainer, 
Bell, and Danley. 

"I see another Presiding Elder — pale, tall, deli- 
cate, and slow of speech. It is Richard Corwine, 
of the Hopkinsville District. Two years later he 
went in triumph from the Louisville District to his 
heavenly home. 

"'Who is that, walking up the aisle? He is evi- 
dently a man of mark/ I said, as his keen eye and 
high forehead attracted my attention. 
16 



362 



We stern Cavaliers. 



"'That is Jonathan Stamper, of the Shelbyville 
District, one of the truest men and one of the most 
powerful preachers in America.' 

"Another sat before me, whose gray locks and be- 
nignant face attracted my attention. It was Richard 
D. Neale, the Presiding Elder on the Barboursville 
District, lying in the mountains of Kentucky. His 
energy and zeal know no bounds save his wasting 
strength. Several preachers, now prominent in the 
Conference, were brought into the Church and con- 
verted to God through his instrumentality. He is 
a grand old man. Everybody loves him. He looks 
every inch a soldier. He is a brave cavalier, and 
was born to command. 

" Here, close by us, is James King, of the Bowling 
Green District. How modest he seems! See his 
keen black eyes, his fair, florid complexion, his well- 
knit frame. He is said to be an able preacher, a 
good disciplinarian, a dignified gentleman, and bids 
fair to do the Church much service before he goes 
up to reap his great reward. There is Dr. Bascom. 
I have heard him preach as no other man ever 
preached. He is tall, handsome, erect. 

" 'Where is Dr. Tomlinson?' I inquired. He was 
absent; sickness in his family detained him at home. 

" ' He is our most accomplished scholar and most 
classical orator/ said my friend. 'But, yonder is 
Professor McCown. He is here among the friends 
of his youth. Did you ever see a finer model of a 
man? And there is Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, the 
Agent of Augusta College, who often outpreaches 
any of them.' 



Western Cavaliers. 



363 



"'Who is that venerable, graceful old man, who 
always wears a smile?' 

" 6 That is Richard Ty dings — every inch a gentle- 
man. On both sides of the mountains he has won 
many souls to Christ.' 

"'That one — a little man, with iron-gray hair? 
There seems to be nervous energy enough in him 
for half a score of men.' 

" 4 Edward Stevenson is his name — now of Bus- 
sellville. He is a very efficient man, and one of a 
large and influential family, devoted to Methodism 
since it first entered the State. Near him sits 
another, almost as gray. His name is William B. 
Landrum, and the Church has not in it a truer man. 
See that old man, with long face, large chin, thin, 
long hair, drawn up over an almost bald head — that 
is Josiah Whitaker. He is about to speak in reply 
to Stamper's philippic against local itinerants. Hear 
him: "I have never asked any favor of your Bish- 
ops; I have left old Sukey Honey* to scratch for 
the children, and have traveled a hundred or a hun- 
dred and fifty miles from home, to serve your 
roughest circuits, for almost nothing. These thirty 
years I have been serving the Church, and in all 
that time I have never complained. I have never 
located, nor stationated, nor supernumerated, nor 
superannuated, nor Presiding Elderated, and I have 
no favors to ask of any of you!" There sits by him 
his son-in-law, James C. Crow, a man of great 
worth and a perfect pattern of fidelity. But listen 
to what the old men are saying of one of the young 
-The maiden name of his wife. 



364 



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preachers. He has married before he is an elder. 
His brother defends him. He had traveled for two 
years under a Presiding Elder, and has been a pro- 
bationer in the Conference for one year. George 
W. Brush is the next speaker. He says a deacon 
must be the husband of one wife; that, in this old 
usage against matrimony, we are imposing a yoke 
on our brethren which neither we nor our fathers 
were able to bear. The young man is acquitted. 
Others have a fair warning of what they may expect 
if in this respect they walk not according to the 
traditions of the elders.' 

" < Please, tell me why I hear so little in this place 
from men in the prime, or morning, of life — men 
distinguished for their success in doing good among 
the people. There are Brush, Roberts, Deering, 
Babbitt, Linn, Grain, Lewis, Woolliscroft, Peter 
Taylor, Bedford, Foster, Merritt, Abbett, Savage, 
Hardy, Harrison, Grubbs, Thompson, Perry, the 
Kellys, the Holdings, and others. I am disap- 
pointed in not hearing from them on the Confer- 
ence-floor/ 

" ' You will hear many of them in the pulpit, and 
hear about them on the floor of the Conference. If 
all were to speak, too much time would be con- 
sumed; hence, those who are officially interested in 
the case in hand are the only persons who are gen- 
erally expected to consume time upon it. Besides 
those you have named, there are others on our roll 
to whom the people gladly listen; and among those 
to be admitted into full connection, this year and 
next, there are several who have already distin- 



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365 



guished themselves among the people, and will soon 
occupy places of prominence among their older 
brethren. There are Anderson, and Lee, and South. 
In the class of the present year, besides a number 
of young men who promise future usefulness, there 
are Bell, Atkinson, Miller, Atmore, and Bottomley, 
who are already able ministers.' " 

It is always pleasant to review the labors of faith- 
ful men in the ministry, and to record the triumphs 
of the cross. In no State in the Union have the 
achievements of Methodism been more signal than 
in Kentucky. If the membership in the Church 
has not been so large at any one time as in some 
other States, it is not because fewer persons have 
worshiped at its altars, or been brought to Christ 
through its ministry. Successful at home, it has 
sent its blessings abroad, and planted the standard 
of Christianity in other fields. 

In looking over the appointments for this year, 
we find no change in the Presiding Elderships. 

In the Augusta District, "Walter Shearer was re- 
turned to the Little Sandy Circuit. 

In the Lexington District, George W. Brush was 
again sent to Lexington, Edwin Roberts to Ver- 
sailles, Carlisle Babbitt to Winchester, John W. 
Biggin to Mount Sterling, and Hartwell J. Perry to 
Georgetown. 

In the Louisville District, William McD. Abbett 
again travels on the Newcastle Circuit. 

In the Shelbyville District, Richard Tydings, John 
F. South, A. J. McLaughlin, William M. Grubbs, 
and Richard L Dungan, occupy the same fields in 



366 



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which they had labored faithfully and acceptably the 
previous year. 

In the Harrodsburg District, Richard Deering was 
returned to Harrodsburg and Danville. 

In the Hopkinsville District, we again find Robert 
G. Gardner on the Princeton Circuit, where his min- 
istry had been greatly blessed. 

In the Barboursville District, Nathan ael H. Lee 
and William James were reappointed to the same 
fields on which they had labored the year before — 
the former to the Mount Pleasant Mission, and the 
latter to the Kentucky Mission. 

The year upon which we are now entering was re- 
plete with benedictions to the whole Church. The 
net increase of the membership was not so great as 
that of the previous year, yet there was scarcely a 
charge in the Conference that was not visited by a 
gracious revival of religion, while in many places the 
interest was of the most extraordinary character. 
Commencing with the Maysville District, the labors 
of Hubbard H. Kavanaugh were abundantly blessed, 
while in the Fleming Circuit, under the ministry of 
William M. Crawford and Henry F. Garey — the 
former an able preacher of several years' experience, 
and the latter a young man of promise — many were 
brought to Christ and added to the Church. The 
Germantown Circuit — under the pastoral care of 
Thomas R. Malone — enjoyed great prosperity; and 
in all the other charges in the District many were 
awakened and converted to God. 

In the Covington District the displays of divine 
power were greater than in the Augusta District. 



Western Cavaliers. 



367 



John James, the Presiding Elder, was untiring in 
his labors. He traveled his extensive District, sow- 
ing everywhere the seeds of truth, and gathering 
sinners into the fold of Christ. In the Covington 
Station, Calvin W. Lewis was eminently successful. 
He had scarcely entered upon his work when indica- 
tions were favorable for a gracious outpouring of 
the Holy Spirit. The winter witnessed a signal 
triumph on the part of the Church, in a gracious 
revival in which many were brought to Christ. In 
the Newport Station, the ministry of Grilby Kelly 
was more successful. During the year both the 
white and the colored membership were more than 
doubled, and the Church reached an eminence it 
had not previously known. 

Aaron Moore traveled the Leesburg Circuit. Al- 
though he descended from an aristocratic family in 
England, he was without education. His grand- 
father was a member of the British Parliament; 
yet when the grandson attained his majority he was 
unacquainted with the rudiments of an English ed- 
ucation. Aaron Moore was born in Ohio, April 2, 
1813. At twenty years of age he embraced religion 
and joined the Methodist Episcopal Church. He 
was admitted on trial into the Kentucky Conference 
in 1839, and was appointed to the Millersburg Cir- 
cuit, as the colleague of Thomas W. Chandler. In 
1840 he was appointed to the Leesburg Circuit alone, 
where we now find him. It was with considerable 
hesitation on the part of the Conference that he was 
received as a fellow-laborer. Without culture and 
without education, he seemed to promise but little 



368 



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to the Church. Only a short period elapsed before 
he evinced a superior intellect and a winning ad- 
dress. His fervent piety, his burning zeal, his un- 
compromising devotion to the cause of Christ, gave 
him an influence that but few men possessed. As a 
preacher he soon took rank with many of his more 
highly-favored brethren, while as an exhort er he 
had scarcely a peer in the Conference. More gifted 
in his public prayer than any preacher of our ac- 
quaintance, the most obdurate hearts were often 
melted while listening to petitions offered before 
the throne of grace in their behalf by this faithful 
servant of God. Mr. Moore had traveled but a 
few months until the people thronged to hear him 
preach. He had a clear head, a fertile imagina- 
tion, a good voice, and was withal so humble. He 
had been soundly converted to God, and was well 
acquainted with the doctrines of the Church, and 
taught them with marked ability. On the Leesburg 
Circuit more than one hundred souls were brought 
to Christ through his ministry, and the Church was 
greatly revived under his labors. 

George W. Merritt was appointed to the Paris Cir- 
cuit. He was born in Fincastle, Botetourt county, 
Virginia. April 17. 1807. Losing his parents when 
he was quite young, he was placed under the care 
of an elder brother, who resided in Staunton, Vir- 
ginia, where he was brought up and educated. In 
the autumn of 1827 he came to Kentucky, and set- 
tled in "Winchester. During the same year, under 
the ministry of Henry McDaniel, a good and pure 
man, he was awakened to his condition as a sinner, 



Western Cavaliers. 



369 



and was received into the Church as a seeker of re- 
ligion by Milton Jamieson. A short time after- 
ward he found the pearl of great price. He was 
soon impressed with the conviction that it was his 
duty to proclaim the tidings of a Redeemer's love 
to perishing sinners, yet felt reluctant to enter upon 
so responsible a work. In the meantime he re- 
moved to Lexington, where, in 1833, he was licensed 
to preach by William Gunn, at that time the Pre- 
siding Elder on the Lexington District. In the 
spring of 1834 he was employed by William Adams, 
who succeeded Mr. Gunn as Presiding Elder, to 
travel on the Madison Circuit, with James Ward, 
until the next Conference should meet. He entered 
the Kentucky Conference in 1834, and was reap- 
pointed to the Madison Circuit, with William B. 
Landrum. His next appointment was to the Shelby 
Circuit, as the colleague of Richard Holding. In 
1836 he was placed in charge of the Mount Sterling 
Circuit, and of the Fleming Circuit in 1837. At 
the Conference of 1838 he was appointed to the 
Danville Circuit, with William D. Matting, who re- 
mained in the work but a short time, when Mr. Mer- 
ritt was placed in charge, with Matthew N. Lasley, 
who was transferred from Pulaski Coal Mines, as 
his colleague. In 1839 he was sent to Cynthiana. 
In 1840 we find him on the Paris Circuit, one of 
the most pleasant charges in the Conference. 

From his entrance into the ministry Mr. Merritt 
gave promise of great usefulness in the Church. 
His presence commanding, and popular in his ad- 
dress, he was well calculated to make friends in 
16* 



370 



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every circle in which he was thrown. Believing 
himself to be divinely called to preach the gospel of 
Christ, he prosecuted the work of the ministry with 
unswerving fidelity and zeal, and was instrumental 
in the accomplishment of much good. Acceptable 
as a preacher, and highly gifted in exhortation, his 
w T arm appeals were listened to with interest, while 
many were persuaded to abandon a life of sin and 
turn to God. On the Paris Circuit, where we find 
him this year, more than one hundred and fifty per- 
sons were converted, and the membership largely 
increased. 

On the Millersburg Circuit, John C. Hardy was 
equally successful in winning souls to Christ. He 
was a warm and earnest preacher, and God honored 
his ministry. 

In the Lexington District, several of the charges 
were favored with extraordinary revivals of religion. 
Under the ministry of John Christian Harrison, in 
Frankfort, many witnessed a good confession. The 
Versailles Circuit was in a blaze. Edwin Roberts, 
the zealous and indefatigable pastor, like a flaming 
fire, traveled through his circuit, urging the Church 
to greater fidelity, and pleading with sinners to be 
reconciled to God. As early in the Conference-year 
as November seventy-five persons were added to the 
Church, and the good work had only commenced. 
The preachers on the Winchester Circuit were Car- 
lisle Babbitt and Drummond Welburn — the latter 
a young man who had just joined the Conference. 
Promptly entering upon their work, they prosecuted 
it with fidelity and zeal, and before the opening of 



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371 



spring about one hundred persons made a profession 
of religion. 

John W. Riggin was in charge of the Mount 
Sterling Circuit. He was born in Maryland, August 
26, 1794. When he was only eight years old his 
parents removed to Kentucky, and settled in Mason 
county. The country at that period was new and 
sparsely settled, and afforded him no facilities for 
acquiring an education. He grew up to manhood a 
stranger to God and indifferent to the claims of re- 
ligion. In 1816, under the ministry of William 
Holman, he was awakened, converted, and joined 
the Church. Believing it to be his duty to preach 
the gospel, yet not prepared to enter the itinerant 
ranks, in 1823 he was licensed to preach, and for 
eleven years was active and useful in a local sphere. 
In 1833 he entered the Conference, and was ap- 
pointed to the Fleming Circuit as junior preacher, 
and the following year to the same field as preacher 
in charge. At the Conference of 1835 we find him 
on the Grermantown Circuit, and in 1836 on the 
Lewis Circuit. At the Conference of 1837 he was 
sent to Sharpsburg, where he remained for two 
vears. In 1839 he was sent to the Mount Sterling 
Circuit, where we still find him in 1840. On the 
Mount Sterling Circuit, as in all the charges he had 
previously filled, the ministry of Mr. Riggin was 
greatly blessed. Revivals crowned the labors of 
this good man, and many souls were converted 
through his instrumentality. 

The Louisville District was less prosperous this 
year than for several years preceding. Although 



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the Fourth-street and Eighth-street Churches were 
two separate charges the greater portion of the year 
before, yet they were not formally separated until 
the Conference of 1840. John H. Linn was sta- 
tioned at Fourth-street, and Thomas Bottomley at 
Eighth-street. The preachers in these two charges 
were useful and beloved. In the Fourth - street 
Church, Mr. Linn attracted large congregations, 
who listened to his warning voice and heard the 
words of life as they fell from his lips. From week 
to w r eek was sown good seed, which soon bore fruit 
to the honor and glory of God. Crowded assem- 
blies waited on the ministry of Mr. Bottomley, and 
many were brought into the Church through his un- 
ceasing labors. His preaching was very peculiar. 
His language was simple, and easy to be understood. 
The uneducated knew the meaning of his words, 
and the learned were interested and impressed with 
his plain, pure English. He but seldom preached 
what are technically styled doctrinal sermons, yet no 
one understood the doctrines of the Church better 
than he did. It is true, the theoretical teachings of 
Christ and the apostles were embodied in his ser- 
mons, in which were set forth the blessings of 
Christian experience and the practical duties of re- 
ligious life. He made no effort at display, and yet 
he often ascended to the loftiest heights of oratory. 
He was calm and dispassionate in the investigation 
of his subject, and all the while there was a pathos 
and a power in his manner of presenting the great 
truths of the gospel by which the pulpit is but sel- 
dom distinguished. His exposition of the text was 



Western Cavaliers. 



373 



lucid and forcible, and his exhortations powerful 
and convincing. He wore a round-breasted coat — 
the old Methodist style — and looked every inch a 
Methodist preacher of the Wesleyan type. His 
quick perception and sound judgment, together with 
his consistent piety and burning zeal, pointed him 
out as a safe counsellor, and indicated the eminent 
position, in the affections and confidence of his 
brethren, which he would occupy in the coming 
years. Such was Thomas Bottomley when we first 
saw him, in 1840. 

Mr. Bottomley is an Englishman by birth, having 
been born, June 2, 1805, at Cononley Woodside, 
near Skipton-on-Craven, West Riding, Yorkshire, 
England. On the 24th of December, 1817, when 
only twelve years of age, he joined the Wesleyan 
Methodist Society, and was converted December 24, 
1819, just two years later, and preached his first 
sermon December 24, 1822, being then eighteen 
years of age. He was soon afterward licensed to 
preach. In 1827 he emigrated to America, landing 
in New York July 4 of that year. Prom this pe- 
riod until the spring of 1840 he exercised his gifts 
as a local preacher, when he was admitted on trial 
into the Baltimore Conference, and transferred to 
Arkansas. On his way to Arkansas he was detained 
in Louisville by the sickness of his wife. In the au- 
tumn of the same year he became a member of the 
Kentucky Conference, and was appointed to the 
Eighth-street Church, where we now find him. 

William Holman was stationed at Brook-street. 
Although not gifted as a preacher, his persuasive 



374 



Western Cavaliers. 



powers could scarcely be excelled. In every portion 
of the State where he had preached the gospel of 
Christ there were seals to his ministry. He was first 
stationed in Louisville in 1833, and, with the excep- 
tion of 1837 and 1838, had continued in that city. 
He was well known in the community, and much 
beloved by the people. Amongst the poorer classes, 
to whom he was especially attentive, he was a great 
favorite. He was a superior pastor, and it was in 
all probability his gifts in this department of minis- 
terial work that contributed more than did any 
thing else to the power and influence he exercised in 
the city of Louisville. To him it made no difference 
whether his services were required in the palaces of 
wealth or in the garrets of the poor; it was always 
the same. "Wherever affliction and sorrow, suffer- 
ing and want, were found, like an angel of mercy he 
was present to administer a balm. The midnight 
watch often found him sitting at the bedside of sor- 
row-stricken ones, offering the consolations of re- 
ligion, or kneeling and offering up earnest prayers 
in their behalf. The winds never blew so fiercely, 
the storms never howled so loudly, the rains never 
descended in such torrents, as to hinder him in his 
labor of love. Possessing a feeble constitution, he 
performed the work of a strong man, with an alac- 
rity that surprised all wdio knew him. The Brook- 
street Church, the present year, continued to prosper 
under his care. 

We have previously referred to the German pop- 
ulation that was settling in Louisville. In 1839 the 
question of supplying them with the gospel was not 



Western Cavaliers. 



375 



only agitated, but the purpose was formed to fur- 
nish them with the means of grace. The establish- 
ment of a German Mission was contemplated; but, 
failing to secure a suitable preacher, the work was 
temporarily abandoned. In 1840 Peter Schmucker 
was appointed to this important field. It would 
have been difficult to find a man better adapted to 
the successful prosecution of this work than Mr. 
Schmucker. He entered upon his charge about the 
last of December, and on the 2d of March he writes 
from Louisville: "It is only about five weeks since 
I commenced forming a German Society here, and 
from five to ten have been received every Sabbath 
since, so that we now number fifty-six."* At the 
close of the year he reported ninety-three members. 

In the Jefferson Circuit, under the ministry of 
Joseph D. Barnett and James S. Woolls, there was 
considerable prosperity, although there was a de- 
crease in the colored membership. 

Moses Levi traveled on the Elizabethtown Circuit, 
where his labors were greatly blessed; while Peter 
Taylor had charge of the Hardinsburg Circuit, in 
which there were extensive revivals. 

In the Brandenburg Circuit, Alanson C. Dewitt 
and Francis M. English labored faithfully and with 
success. This was Mr. English's first circuit; but 
Mr. Dewitt had traveled as a preacher for several 
years. He was born in Bedford county, Virginia, 
July 23, 1809. He was converted September 1, 
1824, when fifteen years of age. Believing that he 
was divinely called to the work of the ministry, 
* Letter in Western Christian Advocate. 



376 



Western Cavaliers. 



after many misgivings he yielded to the conviction, 
and was licensed to preach by George "W". Taylor, 
May 25, 1833. In the autumn of 1834 he began his 
itinerant career, and for two years performed the 
duties of a traveling preacher under the appoint- 
ment of the Presiding Elder. In 1836 he was ad- 
mitted into the Kentucky Conference, and appointed 
to the Elizabeth Circuit, as the colleague of Joseph 
D. Barnett. In 1837 he was sent to the Glasgow 
Circuit, with James King, and in 1838 to the Bowl- 
ing Green Circuit alone. At the Conference of 1839 
his field of labor was the Scottsville Circuit, and in 
1840 we find him on the Brandenburg Circuit. 
The preaching of Mr. Dewitt was calculated to build 
up the Church rather than to gather persons into 
its folds, yet in the charges he had filled many had 
been awakened and converted through his instru- 
mentality. The Brandenburg Circuit was one of 
the most pleasant in the Conference. Methodism 
exerted a controlling influence within its bounds; 
but under the ministry of Alanson C. Dewitt the 
membership was considerably increased. Though 
as a preacher he was unostentatious and plain, yet in 
his sermons there was a clearness and strength that 
rendered them peculiarly impressive and attractive. 
Whether he defended the doctrines of Christianity 
or enforced the practical duties of religious life upon 
his hearers, his words were well chosen, and good 
was accomplished. Unassuming and modest, he 
yielded too readily to discouragements, and thus 
sometimes failed to win the prize that was within 
his grasp. With a large and growing family, and 



Western Cavaliers. 377 



but poorly supported, he at times hesitated as to 
whether he should retire to the local ranks, and 
serve the Church in a more limited sphere, or prose- 
cute the duties of the itinerant ministry, although 
confronted by difficulties. Believing that God had 
called him to devote his life to this service, he " chose 
rather to suffer affliction" and meet with trials than 
to turn away from the path of duty so obviously 
marked out. 

In the Shelbyville District only two appointments 
report an increase — the Hodgenville and the Litch- 
field Circuits. Napoleon B. Lewis and James I. 
George traveled on the former, and James E. JSTix on 
the latter. Both charges were blessed with revivals. 

The Harrodsburg and Danville Station, the Dan- 
ville and the Irvine Circuits, and the Mount Yernon 
Mission, in the Harrodsburg District, report each an 
increase in the membership this year. Richard 
Deering, who was reappointed to Harrodsburg and 
Danville, labored with undiminished zeal, and the 
pleasure of the Lord continued to prosper in his 
hands. On the Danville Circuit, we find Robinson 
E. Sidebottonl prosecuting his work with energy, 
and reaping the reward of his labors. Two revivals 
in the bounds of his work — one at Beech Grove, 
and the other at Joseph's Chapel — were the result, 
under the blessing of God, of his faithful ministry. 
At the former he had the assistance of Munford 
Pelley, who was traveling on the circuit with him, 
under the appointment of the Presiding Elder, and 
at the latter he was favored with the efficient serv- 
ices of Edwin Roberts. Peter Duncan had charge 



378 



Western Cavaliers. 



of the Irvine Circuit, where he preached with great 
success; while the Mount Vernon Mission, served 
by Thomas Hall, a good and pure man, enjoyed 
prosperity. 

James King was the leader of the hosts in the 
Bowling Green District. Bat few men in the Con- 
ference attracted more attention in the pulpit, or 
preached with greater power, than did this plain and 
unostentatious minister of Christ. The influence 
he exerted for good was widely felt in the District 
over which he presided. 

John C. C. Thompson, a burning and a shining 
light, had charge of the Greensburg Circuit. He 
had entered the itinerant ranks in 1835, and wher- 
ever he had preached his ministry was signally 
blessed. On the Glasgow Circuit, where his earliest 
trophies were won by the persuasive power of the 
truth as it fell warm from his lips, many were turned 
from darkness to light. As the colleague of the 
venerable John Denham on the Burksville Circuit, 
he had been eminently useful. He was reappointed 
to the Burksville Circuit, but was removed, after a 
few weeks, to the Lebanon Circuit, to assist Mat- 
thew N. Lasley. In 1838 he was returned to the 
Lebanon Circuit, and in 1839 was appointed to 
Manchester, in the mountain region of the State, in 
both of which he continued to be useful. We meet 
with him the present year on the Greensburg Cir- 
cuit, like a flaming fire, passing through his charge, 
comforting the people of God and exhorting sinners 
to repent. In the pulpit, in the altar, in the social 
circle, he recommended the religion of Jesus, and 



Western Cavaliers. 



379 



persuaded sinners to be reconciled to God. The 
sound of his Master's feet was heard behind him, 
and many were brought to Christ. 

Matthew N. Lasley was the son of the Rev. 
Thomas Lasley, so distinguished in the history of 
Methodism in the West and South, and the grand- 
son of the Rev. Manoah Lasley, to whose labors 
and zeal in the early settlement of Kentucky the 
Church is greatly indebted. 

Matthew N". Lasley was born in Green county, 
Kentucky, December 2, 1812. Brought up under 
religious influence, he was early impressed with the 
importance of religion, and in the fifteenth year of 
his age he was converted, at Blowing Spring Camp- 
ground, near Greensburg, while Abram Long was 
preaching on Sabbath night. His father a travel- 
ing preacher, and his father's house the home of 
the weary itinerant, in childhood he became familiar 
with the trials and sacrifices incident to the life of 
the faithful preacher of the gospel. The impression 
that the path of duty would lead him to the minis- 
try greatly marred his happiness. With a proper 
conception of the sacredness of the office, and of 
his inadequacy for so responsible a work, he would 
gladly have shrunk from the task. It was not until 
he attained to manhood that he yielded to his con- 
victions. On the 12th of July, 1834, he left his plow 
in the furrow, midway the field, and started to a 
quarterly - meeting held on the Glasgow Circuit, 
where he was licensed to preach by George W. 
Taylor, and placed by him on the Burksville Circuit, 
as the colleague of Thomas C. Davis. 



380 



Western Cavaliers. 



At the following Conference he was admitted on 
trial, and appointed to the same circuit as junior 
preacher, Joseph D. Barnett being then in charge. 
"Working in harmony, the labors of these faithful 
men were blessed. Vital Christianity, in this sec- 
tion of the State, was confronted at that period by 
the erroneous teachings of Campbellism, then in its 
full strength. The Church, however, prospered. A 
new camp-ground was established at Huffman's, in 
Monroe county, at which many were brought to 
Christ, and which became a great Methodist center, 
where hundreds have been converted. In that cir- 
cuit the names of John and Obey Baker, with their 
excellent families, and those of James L. Greenup 
and Barton Harlan, worthy local preachers, deserve 
to be recorded. 

On his way to the Conference held at Shelbyville 
in 1835, Mr. Lasley stopped at Beech Fork camp- 
meeting, in Nelson county, where he spent a few 
days pleasantly and profitably. From this Confer- 
ence he was appointed to the Salt River Circuit, as 
the colleague of the venerable James Ward, with 
his estimable father in charge of the District, as 
Presiding Elder. The circuit was large in its terri- 
torial limits, and included thirty preaching-places. 
The year was pleasant and profitable to the young 
preacher, closing with an excellent camp-meeting 
at Beech Fork Camp-ground, at which Hubbard 
H. Kavanaugh and Dr. Bascom were present and 
preached with great ability and power. . It was at 
this camp-meeting that Dr. Bascom preached, on 
Sabbath at eleven o'clock, from the text, "For the 



Western Cavaliers. 



381 



great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be 
able to stand? " * The sermon was powerful — over- 
whelming. As he portrayed the scenes of the judg- 
ment-day and repeated the words of the text, "For 
the great day of his wrath is come/' five thousand 
people sprang to their feet, frantic with alarm. 

From the Salt River Circuit we follow Mr. Lasley 
to the Lebanon Circuit, where he remained two 
years, and in which, under his ministry, hundreds 
were brought to Christ. His colleague the first 
year was William D. Matting, and the second year 
John C. C. Thompson, who was removed from the 
Burksville Circuit to aid Mr. Lasley — both of whom 
were burning aud shining lights — while in the local 
ranks he was assisted by John Sandusky and James 
Cain, useful and gifted local preachers. The entire 
circuit was in a flame. Hundreds were converted. 
At a single meeting held at Pleasant Run, the first 
year — a place sacred in the annals of Kentucky 
Methodism — nearly a hundred passed from death 
unto life. At Spratt's Camp -ground, in Taylor 
county, the second year, a basket-meeting was held, 
whose fruitage will greatly augment the number of 
the saved in eternity; while at Pleasant Run a 
meeting was held, which, in power and in the num- 
ber of conversions, exceeded that of the former year. 
Before leaving the circuit Mr. Lasley solicited a 
subscription to build a church in Lebanon, and then 
placed the house under contract. 

It was at the Conference held in Danville, in 1838, 
that we remember to have first seen Mr. Lasley. 



-Rev. vi. 17. 



382 



Western Cavaliers. 



He was then in the prime of life, yet seemed enfee- 
bled by the labors he had performed. His appoint- 
ment was to the Pulaski Coal Banks, where he had 
hard work and meager support. He remained in 
this charge until spring, when the Presiding Elder 
sent him to Somerset, to rest and recuperate. While 
in Somerset he made arrangements to build a new 
church, but was called from this work to the Dan- 
ville Circuit, a few weeks later, where he labored 
until Conference, with George W. Merritt, supplying 
the place of William D. Matting, who had retired 
from the circuit. In 1839 he was sent to the Pres- 
tonsburg Circuit, in the mountain region of the 
State, where he spent a delightful year. 

During the period in which Mr. Lasley had been 
an itinerant no man in the Conference had labored 
with greater diligence and fidelity than he. A clear 
and forcible preacher, he was not only acceptable 
everywhere, but was greatly beloved by the people 
he served. Zealous and energetic, his feeble consti- 
tution was unequal to the heavy and constant drain 
made upon it, and at the Conference of 1840 he be- 
lieved it to be his duty to retire and rest, that he 
might reenter the service with redoubled energy. 
He hoped that in a local sphere he might be able 
to accomplish something for the Master, and hence 
he located. He was, however, allowed to remain 
local but a few weeks. George W. Simcoe and 
Zachariah M. Taylor were appointed to the Glasgow 
Circuit. Mr. Simcoe failed to reach the circuit, and 
James King, the Presiding Elder, prevailed on Mr. 
Lasley to fill the vacancy. No appointment could 



Western Cavaliers. 



383 



have been more opportune; for he was well known 
on that charge, and highly esteemed as a minister 
of Christ. 

Before he entered on the discharge of his duties 
on the Glasgow Circuit, meetings had been held at 
different points, resulting in much good. The in- 
terest, however, continued to increase, until the en- 
tire circuit was in a blaze. The revival continued 
through the year, and hundreds were awakened and 
converted to God. 

Mr. Taylor was the son of a Methodist preacher, 
and had been brought up in the Church. His father, 
George W. Taylor, was one of the most able and in- 
fluential members of the Conference. Under their 
ministry the Glasgow Circuit became one of the best 
in the Conference. 

The Burksville, the Albany, the Wayne, and the 
Columbia Circuits, in the same District, were greatly 
blessed. 

Joel Peak, a plain and faithful preacher, was trav- 
eling on the Burksville Circuit. He had entered the 
Conference in 1837, and had filled the Falmouth and 
the Madison Circuits — the latter two years. His 
appointment to the Burksville Circuit, in 1840, was 
pleasant to himself and gratifying to the people. 
Entering upon his work soon after the close of the 
Conference, he prosecuted his ministry with com- 
mendable zeal, and many, through his instrumen- 
tality, were brought into the Church. While Mr. 
Peak, in the Burksville Circuit, was winning souls 
to Christ, in the Wayne Circuit William D. Minga, 
who had been admitted on trial at the previous 



384 



Western Cavaliers. 



Conference, was gathering many seals to his minis- 
try. At the same time John C. Baskett was wit- 
nessing the fruit of his labors in the Albany Circuit; 
while on the Columbia Circuit James C. Crow re- 
ceived sixty members into the Church. 

In the Hopkinsville District, there was an inter- 
esting revival of religion in Russell ville, under the 
ministry of Edward Stevenson, and on the Elkton 
and Logan Circuit, where Wesley G. Montgomery 
and Warren M. Pitts — the latter a local preacher 
employed by the Presiding Elder — were dispensing 
the word of life. In the La Fayette Circuit, James I. 
Ferree, a sprightly and zealous young man, was the 
instrument of much good; while, in the Princeton 
Circuit, the ministry of Robert Gr. Gardner continued 
to be blessed. Thomas Demoss, on the Madisonville 
Circuit, and Jesse Cromwell, on the Greenville Cir- 
cuit, witnessed the conversion of many souls. 

In no part of the Conference, during this year, 
were such displays of divine power witnessed as in 
the Barboursville District. Richard D. £Teale, the 
Presiding Elder, was one of the most zealous min- 
isters in the Church. He traveled his extensive and 
rugged District, preaching, as he passed through it, 
on every occasion that offered. His sermons were 
attended with the demonstration of the Spirit, and 
with power, to the hearts of the people, and many 
turned to God. 

On the Mount Pleasant Mission, Nathanael H. 
Lee, the faithful missionary, witnessed extraordinary 
outpourings of the Holy Spirit. From the center 
to the circumference of his charge sinners were 



Western Cavaliers. 



385 



awakened and penitents converted to God. In the 
Kentucky Mission, William James enjoyed inter- 
esting revivals of religion, and a large ingathering 
into the Church. The Prestonsburg Circuit was in 
a blaze. Allen Sears, one of the most indefatigable 
and industrious preachers we ever knew, labored 
with uncompromising zeal, and gathered much fruit 
to the Master. On the Louisa Circuit, under the 
ministry of Jedidiah Foster, the membership was 
nearly doubled; in the West Liberty Mission, An- 
drew M. Bailey almost trebled the membership ; and 
on the Red Bird Mission, the preacher returned al- 
most twice as many members as were reported the 
year before. 

At the General Conference of 1840 the Tennessee 
Conference was divided — the western portion of it, 
embracing a part of Kentucky, to be called the 
Memphis Conference. The Hickman, the Paclueak, 
and the Wadesboro Circuits were included in the 
new Conference. To the Hickman Circuit James 
M. Major and Daniel Mooney were appointed; to 
the Paducah Circuit, George E. Young and E. L. 
Ragland; and Benjamin Barham to the Wadesboro 
Circuit, 

At a camp-meeting held in the Paducah Circuit, 
in July, thirty -five persons were converted, and 
about the same number were added to the Church. 
At the close of a camp-meeting held in the Wades- 
boro Circuit, the last of August, Daniel Mooney, in 
a letter to the editor of the South-western Christian 
Advocate, dated September 10, says: "The camp- 
meeting at Mount Pisgah is just over. The result 
17 



386 



Western Cavaliers. 



was rather more glorious than we could have antici- 
pated. The preachers preached in the spirit of their 
Divine Master; for, indeed, their words fell with all 
the weight of a prophet's fire on the congregation. 
Those who felt sensibly a declension of the work of 
grace in their own souls were greatly revived and 
strengthened; some who had been mourners for 
three or four years were happily and powerfully 
converted; and the gay and inconsiderate, and the 
gray -headed sinners, were smitten 'between the 
joints of the harness' by the arrows of the Al- 
mighty, which caused them to fall before God into 
the altar, like Dagon before the ark, and cry for 
mercy. The precise number converted is not yet 
known; but, from the best calculation, there were 
about sixty who found the gospel to be the power of 
God to their own salvation, and forty-seven attached 
themselves to the Methodist Episcopal Church, on 
probation." 

On the Hickman Circuit, Mr. Mooney says: "At 
several of our appointments we have had a comfort- 
able revival of God's work. At my week-day ap- 
pointment, at Pleasant Hill, we had a most com- 
fortable time with several mourners who came to 
the altar of prayer. On the next Sunday evening 
Brother Major had an appointment there, and five 
were converted. Brother Gentry, a local preacher, 
and myself held a two-days' meeting at New Hope, 
at which there were eight brightly and soundly con- 
verted. Some local brethren held a two-days' meet- 
ing at Walnut Grove, and I learn that five embraced 
religion there. Our camp-meeting at Mobley's was 



We stern Cavaliers. 



387 



not as great as we anticipated, though there were 
thirty-five or forty who professed religion, if our 
calculation was correct. It is probable that there 
have been something over a hundred additions to 
the Church this year." 

In the Kentucky Conference the increase this 
year was one thousand four hundred and seventy- 
nine white and four hundred and forty colored 
members; in Jackson's Purchase there was an in- 
crease of three hundred and ten in the white mem- 
bership and a decrease of three in the colored. 

The total increase in Kentucky was one thousand 
seven hundred and eighty-nine white and four hundred 
and thirty-seven colored. 



388 



We stern Cavaliees. 



CHAPTER X. 

FROM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1841 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1842. 

The little cloud increases still, 

The heavens are big with rain; 
We wait to catch the teeming shower, 

And all its moisture drain: 
A rill, a stream, a torrent flows, 

But pour the mighty flood ; 
sweep the nations, shake the earth, 

Till all proclaim thee God ! 

THE session of the Kentucky Conference of 1841 
was held in Maysville, commencing September 
15. There was no Bishop present, and Jonathan 
Stamper was called to the chair, and opened the 
Conference with reading the Scriptures and with 
prayer. 

After the roll had been called, the Conference 
proceeded to elect a President. Upon balloting, 
Jonathan Stamper was duly elected. 

Thomas N. Ealston was elected Secretary, and 
William M. Crawford Assistant Secretary. 

Isaac Collard and Hubbard H. Kavanaugh were 
appointed the Committee on Public Worship. 

John Christian Harrison, William B. Landrum, 



Western Cavaliers. 



389 



and William H. Anderson, were appointed Stewards 
of the Conference. 

Alanson C. Dewitt, John Beatty, and Albert H. 
Bedford, were appointed the Committee on Books 
and Periodicals. 

Burr H. McCown, John H. Linn, and Hubbard H. 
Kavanaugh, were appointed the Committee on Me- 
moirs. 

The following resolution, signed by Benjamin T. 
Crouch and George W. Brush, was presented and 
adopted: 

" Whereas, there is much interest felt and mani- 
fested in our State, and especially in the northern 
part of it, on the subject of Temperance; and 
whereas, we regard the good already effected by the 
temperance reform as sufficient encouragement to 
all the friends of morality and religion to continue 
their exertions in its behalf; and whereas, we believe 
this Conference cannot acquit itself fully in the esti- 
mation of the public generally, and especially of the 
religious portion thereof, without a continuation of 
its usual cooperation in this great and good work 
by some distinctive action upon the subject, at its 
present session; therefore, 

"Resolved, That a committee of three of the mem- 
bers of this body be appointed, to be styled the 
Committee on Temperance, whose duty it shall be 
to take this subject under consideration and advise- 
ment, and report thereon to the Conference as early 
as practicable." 

The Kentucky Conference, at this period, was in 
full sympathy with the great temperance movement 



390 



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that was exerting so powerful an influence in the 
commonwealth; hence, we find that not only on the 
first day of the session, but in advance of any other 
question, the action of the Conference is invited to 
this subject. Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, George W\ 
Brush, and Burr H. McCown, were appointed on this 
committee. A Committee on Necessitous Cases was 
also appointed, consisting of Jedidiah Foster and 
Carlisle Babbitt. 

At the afternoon session of the first day a com- 
munication from Bishop Andrew was received and 
read before the Conference, presenting an account 
of the great affliction in his family as the cause of 
his absence, and expressing regret that he would 
not be able to be present. At the request of the 
Conference, the President appointed a committee of 
three to prepare a letter of condolence to Bishop 
Andrew. Edward Stevenson, Henry B. Bascom, 
and Burr H. McCown, composed the committee. 

On the first clay of the Conference, during the 
morning session, a resolution was passed, requesting 
that a committee of seven be appointed on the af- 
fairs of Augusta College; and during the afternoon 
of the same day Edward Stevenson, George W. 
Brush, John H. Linn, John Tevis, Napoleon B. 
Lewis, Peter Taylor, and John W. Piggin, were ap- 
pointed as the committee. 

On the second day of the session a plan for the 
improvement of ministerial qualification, in order to 
admission into the Kentucky Conference, was sub- 
mitted in the following resolutions: 

" Whereas, in the opinion of this Conference, the 



Western Cavaliers. 391 



aid of learning is deemed highly important to min- 
isterial qualification; and whereas, in view of the 
vast and rapid advance of mental improvement 
throughout society, there is an imperious demand 
on us to elevate the standard of ministerial educa- 
tion, in order to maintain an influence in society, 
and to avail ourselves of all human as well as divine 
aid for increased usefulness, 

u Be it therefore resolved, by the Kentucky Annual 
Conference, That after the session of we will re- 
quire of all unmarried young men, who may present 
themselves for admission into the Conference, that 
they be examined, by a committee appointed by the 
Bishop or President of the Conference, upon the 
studies now prescribed for the first four years after 
admission upon trial; and if they are found defi- 
cient, that they be sent to Augusta College to pur- 
sue the said course, either in whole or in part, being 
furnished with a certificate, by the committee, show- 
ing their claims to the provisions of the plan, and 
prescribing the time to remain and the studies to be 
pursued. 

"Be it also resolved, by the Conference, That we add 
to the above course the study of the original lan- 
guages of the Bible, for at least one year. 

"By order of the Conference, This plan shall take 
effect at the time prescribed: provided that against 
that time the Conference shall receive satisfactory 
assurance that provision has been made to meet 
the boarding expenses of such candidates for the 
ministry, during their course of instruction in the 
College." 



392 



Western Cavaliers. 



These resolutions were signed by Burr H. McCown 
and Thomas JST. Ralston, and were referred to the 
Committee on the Affairs of Augusta College. 

While these resolutions contemplated more than 
was practicable at this period, yet we cannot but 
feel a pleasure in the effort the Conference was 
making to elevate the standard of ministerial quali- 
fication. Previous to this date the demand for 
preachers, together with the absence of facilities for 
acquiring an education, was an excuse for receiving 
men into the itinerant ministry whose mental cult- 
ure had been limited to very few of the elementary 
branches of education. Circumstances, however, 
were changing — indeed, had changed — materially. 
The door to a liberal education had been opened to 
the people, and they were availing themselves of 
the advantages which were offered; and hence the 
ministers by whom they were to be taught would be 
expected to keep pace with those to whom they 
might minister. 

On the third day of the session a resolution was 
offered, "that a committee of three be appointed to 
take into consideration the best methods of carrying 
into effect the objects of the 'Preachers' Aid So- 
ciety;' 7 ' and Burr H. McCown, Carlisle Babbitt, and 
George W. Brush, constituted the committee. 

The following resolutions, signed by Benjamin T. 
Crouch, John H. Linn, and William Gkinn, were 
offered and adopted: 

" Whereas, the Science Hill Female Academy, in 
Shelbyville, Kentucky, has long sustained itself as 
an institution of high literary and moral worth, 



Western Cavaliers. 



393 



justly entitled to the patronage and fostering coun- 
tenance of an enlightened and Christian public; and 
whereas, this body is anxious, by all proper means 
and methods, to encourage and promote sound learn- 
ing in general, and female education in particular; 
therefore, 

" 1. Resolved, That we will continue to extend 
our patronage to the Science Hill Female Academy, 
by presenting its character and claims to our people, 
and by such other means as may be suitable to recom- 
mend it to the public. 

"2. Resolved, That the Presiding Elder of the 
Shelbyvilie District, and the preachers stationed in 
Shelbyville and in charge of the Shelby Circuit, 
from time to time, be a committee to attend the ex- 
aminations of said Academy, and report its condition 
annually to this Conference." 

The Science Hill Female Academy was founded 
by Mrs. Julia A. Tevis, the wife of John Tevis, in 
March, 1825. For more than sixteen years it had 
pursued its mission of good, and had proved itself 
worthy the confidence and patronage of the Con- 
ference, and was nobly sustained by the Church. 
However, it sometimes occurred, strange as it may 
seem, that Protestant, and even Methodist, parents, 
instead of sending their daughters to Science Hill, 
where they might receive a first-class education and 
become well prepared for the duties of life, patron- 
ized female colleges under the supervision of Romish 
priests, where only a superficial education might be 
acquired, while the mind of the pupil would become 
poisoned against the influence of home and the 
17* 



394 



Western Cavaliers. 



teachings of Christianity. The Kentucky Confer- 
ence felt the dangerous tendency in this direction, 
and, not only by resolutions adopted on the floor of 
the house, but by active efforts during the year, did 
all that it could to arrest the evil. 

The most of the session, previous to the Sabbath, 
was occupied in the examination of the character of 
the preachers and in considering the recommenda- 
tions of local preachers to deacons' orders, and of 
local deacons to elders' orders. 

On Monday morning an interesting report, in 
reference to the Preachers' Aid Society, was sub- 
mitted by the committee appointed for that purpose, 
in which they say: "The object of this Society is 
one of vast and incalculable importance. It is to 
provide an assurance, a well-grounded confidence, 
that after the faithful minister has become oppressed 
with infirmities in the service of the Church, and 
has retired from effective labor, he shall still be 
cheered by the gratitude of the Church, and find a 
solace and support in some permanent provision 
made for his wants. All support, as j^et provided, 
is insufficient and too precarious; and, humanely 
speaking, cheerless indeed must be the prospect 
of our ministers if, after decrepitude, infirmity, and 
pain have come upon them as the results of their 
laborious services in the Church, there is no sure 
relief, no certain and permanent provision for their 
wants, in the gloomiest condition of their existence. 
It must be seen that although the Society organized 
may afford some relief, it is only partial and entirely 
inadequate; and there are two difficulties connected 



Western Cavaliers. 



395 



with this very relief: one is that, in many instances, 
it is obtained from those who themselves are in 
want, and who in their generosity contributed the 
only money upon which they relied to bear their 
expenses to their appointments; the other is the 
impression that the Preachers' Aid Society having 
been established, the Church may in some measure 
withhold its customary aid, not to say that some of 
the preachers may become somewhat careless in lift- 
ing contributions; and thus, in all probability, we 
may forfeit as much as, or even more than, we gain 
by the organization. The committee have therefore 
concluded that if a fund be relied upon, our surest 
method is the appointment of a special agent, whose 
work shall be to collect a sufficient amount, the in- 
terest of which, when safely invested, shall relieve 
this portion of our wants and this source of our 
constant anxiety. Your committee do, therefore, 
recommend an agent for this special object." 
This report was adopted. 

The conception of a Society for the purpose of 
aiding in the support of superannuated preachers, 
and the widows and orphans of deceased preachers, 
was a noble one. Ministers with families were often 
induced to retire from the pastoral work that they 
might provide against the infirmities of age, while 
others, continuing at their posts, suffered from un- 
pleasant misgivings in reference to the evening-time 
of life. Although the Preachers' Aid Society in 
Kentucky failed to accomplish what was intended 
and what was anticipated, yet it left its benedictions 
on the Church. 



396 



We stern Cavaliers. 



The following important resolution, offered by 
Thomas ]ST. Ralston and John Christian Harrison, 
was adopted: 

"Resolved, That it shall be the duty of each mem- 
ber of the Conference to furnish the Secretary, to- 
morrow morning, a written statement, over his own 
signature, of the date of his birth, conversion, ad- 
mission on trial, and of his admission into full con- 
nection; and that the Secretary read the same, and 
arrange the order of names in the Conference-list 
so as to give precedence to seniority in full connec- 
tion/' 

At this very Conference three preachers were re- 
ported as having died during the year, two of whom 
left no record as to the date of either their birth or 
conversion. The want of this information pre- 
vented the preparation of a suitable memoir, and 
hence the introduction of the resolution. 

On Tuesday morning, at ten o'clock, the Confer- 
ence adjourned to hear the address on Education, 
which was delivered by Thomas N". Ralston. 

Business was resumed at the close of the address, 
when the following resolution was offered by Isaac 
Collard and Benjamin T. Crouch, and adopted by 
the Conference: 

"Resolved, That the thanks of this Conference are 
due to Thomas N". Ralston for his address on Edu- 
cation, and that we request him to furnish a copy to 
the Book Agents, to be published in the Western 
Christian Advocate" 

The committee to whom w 7 ere referred the reso- 
lutions on the subject of ministerial qualification, 



Western Cavaliers. 



397 



to which we have already alluded, submitted the 
following : 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Conference, That the 
Trustees of Augusta College be, and they are hereby, 
respectfully requested to devise and adopt such ways 
and means as, in their judgment, may be deemed 
most proper for the procurement of a permanent 
fund, the annual proceeds of which shall be applied 
to the defraying of the boarding expenses of such 
candidates for admission on trial into the Kentucky 
Conference, and such sons of the itinerant ministers 
of the Conference above named, as may be recom- 
mended to the College by the aforesaid Conference: 
provided, nevertheless, that a plan embracing these 
desirable objects, now in the hands of a standing 
committee, shall ultimately receive the sanction of 
the body above named." 

John H. Linn offered the following resolution, 
which was adopted: 

"Resolved, That the Rev. H. B. Bascom be, and 
he is hereby, respectfully requested to deliver, at 
the next session of the Kentucky Annual Confer- 
ence, to be held at Lexington, a series of lectures 
on Infidelity, at such times during the session as 
may suit his convenience.", 

A resolution signed by Henry B. Bascom and 
Benjamin T. Crouch, in reference to colonization, 
was offered and adopted. It reads as follows: 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, in 
Conference assembled, That, amid the varied and pro- 
tracted discussion of the subject, we continue to 
cherish undiminished confidence in the wisdom, be- 



398 



Western Cavaliers. 



nevolence, and promise of African colonization, as 
projected and in course of accomplishment by the 
American Colonization Society." 

Burr H. McCown and Thomas N". Ralston had 
been appointed a committee in reference to the pub- 
lication of a book of memoirs, containing an account 
of the birth, conversion, ministerial labors, and death 
of members of the Conference. On Wednesday 
morning, the 22d, they made the following report, 
which was accepted : 

" Inasmuch as the most important and interesting 
facts connected with the history of any people are 
as fading as the perishing forms of men, without 
transmission by immortal letters; and whereas, the 
history of the rise and progress of Methodism in 
Kentucky and the biographies of those holy and 
faithful men engaged in this great and glorious 
work are not before our Church in this State, in 
any distinct work; and it is considered exceedingly 
desirable to embody the history of Methodism, thus 
far and hereafter among us, with its most interest- 
ing facts and the biography of its most faithful 
servants, in a work particularly devoted to this 
special object; therefore, 

66 Be it resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, 

That a committee of be appointed, to prepare 

materials for a work, to be entitled , which 

shall contain a clear and satisfactory account of the 
rise and progress of Methodism in this State, and a 
brief biography, preceded with engraved likenesses 
of the ministers of this Conference most distin- 
guished for their zeal, faithfulness, and success in 



Western Cavaliers. 



399 



the work of God, which selection shall be made by a 
committee, or by a vote of the Conference. 

"And be it farther resolved, That it shall be made 
the duty of the same committee to procure such a 
subscription as will amply justify this Conference 
in authorizing the publication of the said work." 

It was farther suggested that the proceeds of the 
volume be appropriated to the Preachers' Aid So- 
ciety. 

The committee to provide materials, and to pre- 
pare the work, consisted of Burr H. McCown, Hub- 
bard H. Kavanaugh, John Tevis, Edward Stevenson, 
and George W. Brush. 

Fifty-five years had elapsed since James Haw and 
Benjamin Ogclen first lifted the standard of the cross 
in Kentucky. During this period the Church had 
grown from a few scattered members to more than 
forty thousand communicants. Of all those who 
had confronted danger and encountered hardships in 
unfurling the crimsoned banner on the once "dark 
and bloody ground," but few remained. Their 
deeds of chivalry and noble daring, too, were pass- 
ing rapidly into oblivion. To collect the scattered 
fragments of their lives and labors, and embody 
them in permanent form, that future generations 
might know how much it cost, of toil, and sacrifice, 
and suffering, to plant the standard of Christian it v 
in the wilds of the West, was a grand and noble 
conception. It is to be regretted, however, that the 
volume never appeared, that only a few scanty ma- 
terials were collected and preserved, and that so 
much of the early history of Methodism in the 



400 



We stern Cavaliers. 



West, in which there would have been so many in- 
cidents to interest and animate the Church in after 
ages, was thus lost forever. 

It was announced on the floor of the Conference, 
on the afternoon of Wednesday, the 22d, by Dr. 
Bascom, that propositions had been received by him 
from a certain corporation, which he desired should 
be referred to a special committee of three. The 
committee, as appointed by the President, was com- 
posed of Henry B. Bascom, Benjamin T. Crouch, 
and Hubbard H. Kavanaugh. Joseph S. Tomlinson 
and Thomas N. Ralston were subsequently added to 
the committee. 

On Thursday, the 23d, the following report was 
submitted, and unanimously adopted by a rising 
vote: 

" The Trustees of Transylvania University having 
tendered the control and management of said Uni- 
versity to the Methodist Episcopal Church, by the 
adoption of the following resolutions, bearing date 
September 21, 1841: 

" 'Resolved, That a tender of the control of Tran- 
sylvania University, so far as the nomination of the 
Faculty in the College proper, the Principal of the 
Preparatory Department, together with the direc- 
tion of the course of studies and internal govern- 
ment of said College, is concerned, be, and the same 
is hereby, made to the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
in the United States, and especially to said Church 
in Kentucky, upon such terms as shall be agreed 
upon between said Church and this Board. 

"'Resolved, That S. Chipley be a committee to 



Western Cavaliers. 401 



confer with the Kentucky Conference on the sub- 
ject of the above institution. 

(Signed.) "'M. C. Johnson, 

" 6 Chairman Board T. T. U. 
"'Attest: D. S. Vigers, Sec. Board T. T. W 
"The special committee, to whom was referred 
the foregoing resolutions to consider and report 
upon, recommend the following resolutions, by the 
Kentucky Conference, in Conference assembled: 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, 
That, in behalf of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
we will accept the proposition of the Trustees of 
Transylvania University, on the following condi- 
tions : 

"First. The Board of Trustees of Transylvania 
University and the Church will unite to obtain any 
enactment of the Legislature that maybe necessary 
in carrying out the design of the parties in the re- 
organization of said institution, as well as to give to 
the Church, through her constituted authorities, the 
right of electing three additional Trustees possess- 
ing the same powers possessed by other Trustees of 
Transylvania University. 

"Second. The entire Faculty, as also the teachers 
in the Preparatory Department, in the reorganiza- 
tion of the University, as contemplated in the prem- 
ises, shall be nominated by the Church, through 
her constituted authorities, and confirmed by the 
Trustees; and thereafter, when any of the chairs 
become vacated, by death or otherwise, the remain- 
ing members of the Faculty shall nominate, and the 
Trustees confirm, in order to fill such vacancy. 



402 



Western Cavaliers. 



"Third. The control of the Collegiate and Pre- 
paratory Departments, the internal regulation of the 
College, the direction of the course of studies, the 
management of the Dormitory and Boarding-house, 
the superintendence and care of the buildings and 
grounds belonging to the University, shall be given 
to the Faculty. 

"Fourth. The income arising from all the perma- 
nent funds now belonging to the University, and the 
income arising from all the College-funds now be- 
longing to, or which may hereafter be raised by, 
said Church in Kentucky, as also the tuition fees, 
shall be appropriated for the support of the Faculty 
and teachers in the Preparatory Department, and 
for such incidental expenses as may be necessary to 
sustain such institution, when recommended by the 
Faculty; but the capital, etc., shall remain the sep- 
arate property of the respective parties, each party 
controlling its separate interests. 

"Fifth. It is expressly understood that the Church 
is not required to meet any of the present liabilities 
of said University. 

"Sixth. The Kentucky Annual Conference shall, 
at each session, appoint a committee, whose duty it 
shall be to visit said institution, and report to the 
ensuing Conference its condition and prosperity, 
which report shall be disposed of by the Conference 
in such manner as they may think will best promote 
the interests of said institution, by publication or 
otherwise. 

"Seventh. The Trustees shall at all times fix the 
salaries of the Professors : provided that the salaries 



Western Cavaliers. 



403 



shall not be less than is usually paid in similar in- 
stitutions, unless at the instance of the Faculty. 

"Eighth. The arrangements to carry out and com- 
plete the contemplated reorganization of said Uni- 
versity, by the nomination and appointment of an 
able Faculty, teachers, etc., must be consummated 
by the end of the next collegiate year of said Uni- 
versity, which will be in the autumn of 1842. In the 
meantime, should any of the chairs in said institu- 
tion be vacated, and should it be thought necessary 
and be required by the Trustees, the Church, by her 
authorities, will endeavor to make suitable nomina- 
tions for pro tern, appointments to fill such vacancies. 

"Ninth. Resolved, That the Conference will, by a 
committee to be raised for that purpose, endeavor, as 
speedily as practicable, to get the Board of Com- 
missioners appointed by the late General Conference 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United 
States to take favorable action upon the subject, 
and to report the same to the next General Confer- 
ence, in order to obtain, as far as possible, the influ- 
ence and patronage of said General Conference in 
favor of said University. 

(Signed.) "H. B. Bascom, 

"B. T. Crouch, 
"H. H. Kavanaugh, 
" T. K Ralston." 

Thomas IsT. Ralston presented the following reso- 
lution, which was adopted: 

" Whereas, we, as a Church, are now in negotia- 
tion with the Trustees of Transylvania University, 
in view of effecting a reorganization of the same, 



404 



Western Cavaliers. 



and having submitted the terms upon which we will 
accept the control of said institution; and inasmuch 
as it maybe necessary for the consummation of this 
desirable object that farther negotiations with the 
Trustees be had; therefore, 

"Resolved, That H. B. Bascom, B. T. Crouch, and 
H. II. Kavanaugh, be, and they are hereby, appointed 
a committee to carry out the views as expressed by 
this Conference, with power to do any other act 
that they may think will best promote the interest 
of the Church." 

As early as 1790 the Methodist Church in Ken- 
tucky " fixed a plan for a school, and called it Bethel, 
and obtained a subscription of upward of three 
hundred pounds in land and money toward its estab- 
lishment/' In the important interest of education 
they were in advance of any other denomination in 
the State. Bethel Academy was located in J essa- 
mine county, and stood on a high bluff on the Ken- 
tucky Eiver. Notwithstanding our fathers failed 
in their efforts to sustain the Bethel Academy, yet 
the good this infant institution accomplished can. 
scarcely be estimated. Their noble efforts were 
worthy of all praise. 

The next attempt to establish an institution of 
learning was made in 1821. The project originated 
with the Ohio Conference, from w T hich a committee 
was appointed to attend the Kentucky Conference, 
and propose the establishment of a college in the 
West, under the joint patronage of the two Confer- 
ences. The proposition of the Ohio Conference was 
received with favor by the Kentucky Conference, 



Western Cavaliers. 



405 



and a committee was appointed to confer with the 
committee from Ohio, and to take such measures as 
might be deemed proper to accomplish the contem- 
plated object. 

On the 15th of the following December the Com- 
missioners visited Augusta, Kentucky, and held a 
conference with the Trustees of Bracken Academy, 
and laid before them the object of their appoint- 
ment, and informed them that they had decided to 
locate the college in Augusta, provided they should 
receive proper aid from the Trustees of the Acad- 
emy and the citizens in building a college-edifice. 
The proposition made by the Commissioners was 
accepted, and the college was chartered by the Leg- 
islature of Kentucky, December 22, 1822, and was 
soon in successful operation, under the presidency 
of John P. Finley. 

For many years the Augusta College was a bril- 
liant success. Its halls were crowded with young 
men destined to occupy a commanding eminence in 
the higher circles of life. Some of the first intel- 
lects of the age presided over its fortunes, and many 
of the brightest lights in the medical profession, at 
the bar, and in the pulpit, claimed Augusta College 
as their alma mater. Circumstances, however, for 
which the Kentucky Conference was not responsi- 
ble, and over which it had no control, broke the 
power of this once popular institution. The agi- 
tation of the questions of slavery and abolition ex- 
erted an influence for harm upon its fortunes that 
no Faculty, however learned, could counteract. The 
Ohio Conference practically withdrew its patronage, 



406 



Western Cavaliers. 



because of its location in a slave-holding State, while 
the South, from whence a large proportion of its 
support had been received, declined to send her sons 
so near the border, or to have them educated in the 
same school with young men who held views, and 
so openly advocated them, adverse to an institution 
that was peculiarly Southern. 

Before the proposition made by the Trustees of 
Transylvania University, the location of the college 
at Augusta was the subject of comment in Meth- 
odist circles throughout the State, and the opinion 
was commonly expressed that a removal to some 
more eligible point was requisite, if the Church de- 
sired to sustain an institution of learning of high 
grade. The proposition, therefore, to turn over 
Transylvania University to the Conference could 
not be deemed otherwise than opportune for the 
Church. 

On Wednesday evening, September 22, Hubbard 
H. Kavanaugh and Benjamin T. Crouch offered the 
following resolutions, which were adopted: 

" 1. Resolved, That, in the judgment of this Con- 
ference, the objects of the American Bible Society 
are of unspeakable importance to our own nation 
and to many other and large portions of the world, 
and that we feel it to be our Christian duty cordially 
to cooperate with the Western Agent, or Agents, 
who may call upon us, in carrying out the designs of 
the Society. 

" 2. Resolved, That we regard the recent appoint- 
ment of the Rev. E. W. Sehon, of the Ohio Con- 
ference, as General Agent of the American Bible 



We st e en Cavaliers. 



407 



Society in the West 'as promising much to the sa- 
cred cause, and that we anticipate with pleasure his 
visits to our State in his official capacity, and trust 
that he may have the success that the importance of 
his agency deserves." 

For several years Edmund W. Sehon had been 
prominent before the Church and the country as a 
preacher of the gospel. He was born in Moorefield, 
Virginia, April 14, 1808, and was converted and 
joined the M. E. Church September 20, 1824, at a 
camp-meeting near Clarksburg, Virginia. He was 
licensed to preach October 10, 1827, by William 
Stephens. 

In 1828 he offered himself to the Pittsburgh Con- 
ference, which included in its territory that portion 
of Virginia in which he was born and brought up, 
and was accepted. Belonging to one of the best 
families in the State of Virginia, of fine personal 
appearance, with a mind highly cultivated, his man- 
ners polished, and distinguished for his eloquence, 
his burning zeal, his fervent piety, and his devotion 
to the cause of Christ, he promised great usefulness 
in the Church. 

At the time he entered the Pittsburgh Conference 
Dr. Bascom was President of Madison College, an 
institution of learning in the bounds of that Confer- 
ence. A strong attachment, on the part of Dr. Bas- 
com, was formed for the young itinerant, which, on 
the part of Mr. Sehon, was fully reciprocated, and 
which grew into the warmest friendship in the hearts 
of both. 

Mr. Sehon was appointed to Youngstown Circuit, 



408 



Western Cavaliers. 



as the colleague of Billings 0. Plumpton, and with 
Ira Eddy as his Presiding Elder, having traveled on 
the Lewis Circuit, and then on the Redstone Circuit, 
during the previous year, under the appointment of 
the Presiding Elder. His next appointment was to 
the Monongahela Circuit, as junior preacher. In 
1831 he was transferred to the Ohio Conference, 
and appointed to the city of Cincinnati, where he 
remained two years. At the Conference of 1832 
he was appointed Agent for the Colonization So- 
ciety, in which position he remained but one year. 
In 1833 he was transferred to the Missouri Con- 
ference, and stationed in the city of St. Louis, but 
at the close of the year returned to Ohio, and was 
stationed in the city of Columbus, where he re- 
mained for two years. In 1836 we again find him 
in Cincinnati, in the Western Charge, with Cyrus 
Brooks as his colleague, and the following year, 
with David Womack, he preaches to the same con- 
gregation. In 1838 he was Agent for Augusta Col- 
lege, and in 1839 w r as returned to Cincinnati, and 
appointed to the Eastern Charge, where he remained 
two years. 

Luring the thirteen years that Mr. Sehon had 
spent as an itinerant preacher he labored with un- 
compromising zeal and with extraordinary success. 
Whether he bore the banner of the cross, stained 
w r ith Immanuel's blood, along the waters of the 
Monongahela, or proclaimed its hallowed story on 
the banks of the Mississippi, or foi the Queen City 
of the West, hundreds sought repose and safety be- 
neath its crimsoned folds. As Agent for the Col- 



Western Cavaliers. 



409 



onization Society and for Augusta College, he liacl 
contributed much to the success of these enterprises. 
Six years of his pastoral life had been spent in the 
city of Cincinnati, where crowded audiences waited 
upon his ministry, and hundreds, through his in- 
strumentality, were brought into the Church and 
converted to God. 

At the session of the Ohio Conference of 1841 he 
received the appointment of General Agent of the 
American Bible Society for the West. It was this 
appointment that elicited the action of the Kentucky 
Conference which we have already stated. 

At this Conference twenty-three preachers were 
admitted on trial — viz. : Samuel P. Cummins, Garret 
Davis, John B. Ewan, Charles B. Parsons, Munford 
Pelley, Mitchell Land, James N". Temple, Moses M. 
Henkle, William M. Humphrey, William Conway, 
William Lasley, James J. Williams, Samuel Glass- 
ford, John W. Fields, Josiah Godbey, Ransom Lan- 
caster, William H. Kimberlin, Charles Duncan, 
Alexander B. Sollars, Samuel Kelly, Ajax H. Trip- 
lets, George Riach, and Marcus L. King. 

Of those who had entered the Conference the pre- 
vious year the names of Henry F. Garey and William 
D. Minga disappear from the list; the former was 
discontinued at his own request, and the latter had 
crossed over the last river and entered upon eternal 
life. 

William D. Matting, Calvin W. Lewis, William C. 
McMahan, William S. Evans, Joseph G. Ward, and 
John Beatty, located. 

Absalom Hunt, Alexander Robinson, Henry N. 
18 



410 



Western Cavaliers. 



Vandyke, and William D. Minga, had died during 
the year. 

John H. Linn, by a resolution of the Conference, 
was requested to preach a sermon in memory of 
Alexander Robinson, Henry N.Vandyke, and Wil- 
liam D. Minga; and Jonathan Stamper to preach a 
sermon in memory of Absalom Hunt. 

Absalom Hunt was in the meridian of life when 
he entered the itinerancy. He was fortv-two years 
of age when his name first appeared on the Confer- 
ence-roll. After traveling eight years he was placed 
on the list of the superannuated, where he remained, 
with the exception of four years, when he sustained 
the relation of supernumerary. He died in peace, 
February 21, 1841.* 

We regret that we have no record of the date of 
either the birth or conversion of Alexander Robin- 
son. He was a native of Kentucky, and was con- 
verted at a camp-meeting in Washington county. 
When he joined the Conference, in 1834, he was at 
the noontide of life. His first appointment was to 
the Wayne Circuit, as the colleague of William C. 
McMahan. In 1835 he was sent, with Jesse Sutton, 
to the Somerset Circuit, and in 1836 to the Man- 
chester Mission. On this last field of labor we suc- 
ceeded him, and listened with pleasure to the many 
tributes paid to his moral worth and unyielding de- 
votion to the Church. Notwithstanding his feeble 
health, he performed with remarkable promptness 
the duties of this rugged and laborious charge, and 

*A sketch of Absalom Hunt may be found in the "History 
of Methodism in Kentucky," vol. iii., pp. 346-352. 



Western Cavaliers. 



411 



was the honored instrument in the hands of God 
in doing much good. At the Conference of 1837 
he was appointed to the Mount Vernon Mission, 
with Walter Shearer as his colleague, where his 
health became too precarious for him to entertain a 
thought of continuing in the active service. In the 
autumn of 1838 he was placed on the list of the 
superannuated, from which he was never removed 
until called from labor to reward. 

As a preacher, the talents of Mr. Robinson were 
only moderate; but his fervent piety and the luster 
of his life, together with the exhortations that came 
warm from his heart, won many souls to Christ. 
His end was peaceful. 

Among the young men of promise in the Meth- 
odist ministry in Kentucky, with whom we first- 
became acquainted, we mention with pleasure the 
name of Henry 1ST. Vandyke. He became an itin- 
erant preacher in 1834, and was sent to the Burling- 
ton Circuit. In his second year in the Conference 
he was appointed to Shelbyville and Brick Chapel — 
one of the most important charges in the State — as 
the colleague of Benjamin T. Crouch. When he 
came to Shelbyville he appeared to be about twenty- 
one years of age, and his appointment met with the 
hearty approval of the Church. It was here that 
we first knew him. For twelve months we enjoyed 
his companionship almost daily, and received in- 
struction in the great work to which we expected to 
devote our life. We heard the gospel from his lips, 
from week to week, and never tired in listening to 
his earnest presentation of the great truths set forth 



412 



We stern Cavaliers. 



in the Bible. Daring this period we never heard 
him speak unkindly of any one, nor utter a single 
word unbecoming the dignity of a minister of Jesus 
Christ. His daily walk and conversation shed a 
luster on the profession he made, while in his pas- 
toral visits among the people he served he left behind 
him the savor of a good name. Although he was 
not brilliant as a preacher, yet his talents were of a 
very high order. He was a close thinker and an un- 
tiring student, and prepared his sermons with much 
care, and delivered them with great fluency and 
ease. He attracted large congregations to the house 
of God, and through his labors and zeal many were 
brought to Christ. We never knew a better man, 
nor one in whose life were more fully developed all 
the excellences of Christian character, nor one who 
was more universally beloved. 

While stationed in Shelbyville Mr. Vandyke was 
married to Miss Marie Louisa Soule, daughter of 
Bishop Soule, who was at the time a teacher in 
Science Hill Female Academy. 

He was stationed in Mount Sterling in 1836, in 
1837 in Frankfort, and in 1838 in Cynthiana. In 
each of these charges he maintained the high repu- 
tation he had already won, and gathered into the 
Church many souls, who should deck the crown of 
his rejoicing in the hereafter. 

From the time that Mr. Vandyke entered the 
ministry it was apprehended that his strength would 
not be equal to the duties of the office. For several 
years, however, he met its responsibilities and per- 
formed its labors with no indications of declining 



Western Cavaliers. 413 



health. While stationed in Cynthiana, a cough — the 
hectic flush upon his pale cheek — told quite plainly 
that consumption had marked him as an early vic- 
tim. In 1839 he was appointed to Fourth-street, 
Louisville, with Thomas N. Ralston and William 
Atherton, but was expected to render but little, if 
any, service. It was deemed advisable that he 
should winter in ISTew Orleans. He continued in 
Louisiana during the year, and at the following 
Conference was placed on the list of superannuated 
preachers. Before the next Conference God called 
him home. His death-bed scene was full of triumph. 

William D. Minga had just entered the ministry, 
and was appointed to the Wayne Circuit. His edu- 
cational advantages were meager; but he gave great 
promise of usefulness to the Church. He, too, died 
with harness on. His end was triumphant. 

The memorial-sermon preached by Mi\ Linn was 
remarkably impressive. He gave a faithful deline- 
ation of the lives and labors of these holy men, and 
referred in touching language to the composure with 
which they met death, and the triumph with which 
their closing hours were replete. The last battle was 
fought, the last victory was won, and from the para- 
pets of glory they were looking down on the vast 
assembly who were paying a tribute of respect and 
love to their memory. He read a letter from Mrs. 
Vandyke, in which she said, referring to the death 
of her husband, "It was I who died, not Mr. Van- 
dyke." 

The sermon preached by Mr. Stamper, on the 
death of Absalom Hunt, was such as might have 



414 



We stern Cavaliers. 



been expected by all who knew the distinguished 
preacher. A brother had died; a comrade-in-arms 
had fallen at his post; a warrior had fought the 
good fight, and received his furlough; a Christian 
hero had conquered his last foe, and was wearing 
his crown, and his virtues and prowess were dis- 
played as an incentive to those who had entered 
upon the labors of the noble dead. 

The amount collected for missions, although not 
so large as had been reported on some previous oc- 
casions, greatly exceeded that of the former year: 
it reached the sum of three thousand seven hundred 
and twenty-eight dollars. 

Jonathan Stamper and William M. Grubbs were 
this year transferred to the Illinois, and Henry E. 
Pilch er to the North Ohio, Conference. 

Mr. Stamper had entered the itinerant ministry in 
1811, and had for thirty years been a faithful, la- 
borious, and useful minister of Jesus Christ. In the 
Church in Kentucky he occupied a commanding em- 
inence, and in the Conference enjoyed a popularity 
that could be claimed by but few men. At this ses- 
sion of the Conference, as we have already seen, in 
the absence of the Bishop, he was chosen to preside 
over the deliberations of the body. He was a good 
and true man, and his transfer from Kentucky was 
greatly regretted by both the ministry and member- 
ship of the Church.* 

William M. Grubbs was the son-in-law of Mr. 
Stamper. He was born in Franklin county, Ken- 

*A sketch of Jonathan Stamper may be found in the " His- 
tory of Methodism in Kentucky." 



Western Cavaliers. 



415 



tucky, October 25, 1815. In 1820 his father removed 
to Logan county, and settled near Russellville. In 
1830 he left his father's house and went to Russell- 
ville, where he was employed as a clerk in a dry- 
goods store. Impressed with the importance of 
religion, and awakened to the necessity of seeking 
it at once, in December, 1832, under the ministry of 
Henry J. Evans, he joined the Methodist -Church, 
and sought and found Christ in the pardon of his 
sins. 

From the time he " tasted the good word of God" 
he believed it to be his duty to preach the gospel. 
In May, 1834, he was licensed to exhort by Hooper 
Evans, and August 9, of the same year, he was 
licensed to preach by Isaac Collard, and recom- 
mended to the Kentucky Conference for admission 
on trial. 

His first appointment was to the Lewis Circuit, 
with William Cundiff in charge. The following 
year he was sent, as junior preacher, to the Fleming 
Circuit, with Martin L. Eads. In 1836 his appoint- 
ment was the Germantown Circuit, with Joseph 
Marsee. In 1837 he was placed in charge of the 
Salt River Circuit, where he continued two years, 
and the following two years he was stationed in 
Bardstown; he was transferred thence to the Illi- 
nois Conference. 

The following letter from Mr. Grubbs will be read 
with interest: 

" The revival at which I was converted and joined 
the Church was among the most powerful that have 
ever visited the old Methodist town of Russellville. 



416 Western Cavaliers. 



It began at the close of a quarterly-meeting held by 
the Rev. Isaac Collard, and almost swept the whole 
community. Hundreds were converted and joined 
the different Churches; but the old square brick 
meeting-house, with its heavy galleries and old-fash- 
ioned appointments — the work of Major Bibb, as 
he was then called, some fifteen years before, and 
located in the outskirts of the town — was the center 
of influence, and shared the largest harvest. 

"Though reared in the Baptist faith, I readily 
entered into Methodist doctrines and usages, and 
received baptism, by pouring, at the old altar near 
which, about ten days before, I received the witness 
of pardon and adoption. I shall never forget the 
occasion when about fifty adults knelt and received 
the water of baptism from the hands of Brother 
Evans. It more nearly filled my conception of the 
scenes of Pentecost than any occasion I have ever 
witnessed. Several were so filled with the Spirit 
that they rejoiced aloud, and went through the 
crowded congregation exhorting their unconverted 
friends to turn to Christ, and the altar was speedily 
filled with penitents crying for mercy. It was a 
settler with me as to the better mode of administer- 
ing that ordinance. 

"My first four appointments filled the bill of old- 
fashioned four-weeks' circuits, both as to extent of 
territory and number of appointments. Lewis Cir- 
cuit embraced the whole of Lewis county, with por- 
tions of Mason and Greenup, reaching from within 
three miles of Maysville to within a few miles of 
Portsmouth, Ohio, and numbered more than twenty 



Western Cavaliers. 



417 



preaching-places. Fleming Circuit embraced nearly 
all of Fleming county. Germantown Circuit took 
in the larger part of Mason county, with portions 
of Bracken and Harrison; while Salt River Circuit 
embraced Nelson county, with portions of Bullitt, 
Hardin, Marion, and Washington; and none of 
them numbered less than twenty appointments. 

"My first colleague — the Rev. William Cundiff — 
was a holy man, of great zeal, and I profited much 
from his example and instructions. He was of sin- 
gular physique — a short, stout frame, with ruddy 
face and bushy head, which seemed to rest squarely 
on his shoulders, almost without neck. He has long 
since passed from labor to reward. The people of 
that circuit were kind and appreciative, demonstra- 
tive in their religion, and we had a good year. At 
our last quarterly-meeting at Concord, while Brother 
Tydings w T as preaching on Sunday, I had a violent 
chill, sitting behind him in the pulpit. After a few 
days of severe suffering I recovered sufficiently to 
reach Mother Pelham's — that famous preachers' 
home — three miles above Maysville. Here I re- 
lapsed, and was sick for some two weeks, but was 
able to meet my colleague at our last appointment, 
for a two-days' meeting, .at the mouth of Cabin 
Creek. I submitted to his request, and preached 
once on Sabbath; had another chill, and, returning 
to Mother Pelham's with a raging fever, received a 
good scolding for my imprudence. Under the kind 
nursing of that good family I was soon on my feet, 
and started for the Conference, which met that year 
(1835) at Shelbyville. It was there I first saw 
18* 



418 



Western Cavaliers. 



Bishop Andrew, and subsequent years and events 
only served to increase my admiration for the man 
and the Bishop. Do you remember Bishop An- 
drew's sermon on < Say not ye, There are yet four 
months, and then cometh harvest?' and how, under 
his powerful appeals and touching pathos, our old 
friend (the Rev. E. Stevenson) sitting in the altar 
became so excited that he sprang to his feet and 
shouted aloud, and we all wept and rejoiced to- 
gether? It was there we heard our own Bascom 
preach the funeral -sermon of the Rev. William 
Adams. I shall never forget the old church, with 
its ascending seats, the imperial preacher, his grand 
sermon, and its wonderful effect on the Conference 
and crowded audience. 

" My second colleague — the Rev. M. L. Eads — was 
stout in person, with strong voice and good elocu- 
tion, and was regarded as an able and sound preacher. 
He lived in Harrison county, a day's ride from his 
work, and because of poverty, and family-wants, 
and small pay, was subject to frequent spells of 'the 
blues.' Several strong local preachers resided then 
in Fleming Circuit, and it was a great embarrass- 
ment for a timid young preacher to attempt to 
preach in their presence. Among them were the 
Rev. B. Northcott and the Rev. Joseph D. Farrow. 
At Father Hood's, whose only child, Farrow, had 
married after ten years of itinerancy, I found a 
good home and great kindjiess from all. Father 
IsTorthcott was one of the magistrates of his county, 
and as his court-days in his neighborhood occurred 
on the Saturday of my appointment at old Locust 



Western Cavaliers. 



419 



Church, he was seldom present. To compensate, 
however, he had me preach several times at his 
house at night. I well remember an exhortation 
he gave at the close of one of my efforts to preach. 
His voice was strong, his words came with author- 
ity, and his neighbors, to whom he had preached for 
forty years, listened as though they were hearing 
him for the first time. He had appointments of 
his own every Sabbath, and he preached more fune- 
ral-sermons, and officiated at more marriages, than 
did any other man in that county. He was a man 
of strong will, of single purpose and aim, and, 
whether presiding in the County Court or preaching 
to hundreds, he stood a head and shoulders above 
ordinary men, both in stature and influence for 
good. Though grace made him the antipodes of 
Wolsey, in all the essentials of moral character and 
intent, yet there was a similarity of bearing — 

"Lofty and soar to them that loved him not. 
But, to those men that sought him, sweet as summer. 

U M} T third colleague — the Eev. Joseph Marsee — 
was in every respect a model man, a gentleman by 
nature, a saint by grace, and an effective, sweet- 
spirited gospel-preacher. His wife was the niece of 
the Rev. Marcus Lindsey. A few years afterward he 
removed to Indiana, and, after filling some of the 
best appointments, his health failed, and he died, in 
1837, a superannuate of the South-eastern Indiana 
Conference. By judicious investments he became 
wealthy, and his family stand among the prominent 
Methodists of Indianapolis. We had a good year . 
together, with two glorious revivals — one at Wash- 



420 



Western Cavaliers. 



ington, the old county-seat of Mason, in the winter, 
and one at Salem Church, near Germantown, in 
August. The Rev. Hiram Baker was then, as now, 
an honored local preacher, living near Shannon 
Meeting-house. He was popular with the people, 
and magnified his office. The Rev. James Savage, 
of great wealth and marked character, was 'king' 
of the circuit. He was rather exacting in his de- 
mands of itinerants, but on the whole, at that day, 
was a man of influence and usefulness. I always 
thought he took a fancy to me, and I found a pleas- 
ant home in his family, at Germantown. We were 
greatly aided by the Faculty of Augusta College. 
Bascom, Trimble, and McCown, were magnates 
among the people, and the two latter, especially, 
were abundant in labors. Dr. Tomlinson seldom 
came into the country, as his health was poor; but 
he was in high reputation as a preacher. Dr. Bas- 
com was a great favorite with the old Methodist 
families, who had known him from a boy. I well 
remember a visit he made to the Rees family, and 
his powerful sermon at Shannon Meeting-house, on 
a Sabbath in August, 1837. On Monday morning 
Mother Rees accompanied him to the gate. Her 
eyes followed him as he paced down the road, on 
his plump pony, and, wiping her eyes with her 
apron, she remarked to me: 6 1 always loved Henry 
Bascom. People say he is proud; but I know bet- 
ter. He is not above anybody that will behave and 
do right. He was a good son to his afflicted parents, 
has almost beggared himself to raise and educate his 
brothers and sisters, and he is to-day a good and great 



Western Cavaliers. 



421 



man.' A eulogy, that, as true as it was proper> 
from one who had known him all his life. George 
W. Brush was stationed that year in Maysville, and, 
as he had traveled our circuit a few years before, 
his frequent visits were greatly cherished by the 
people. 

" Salt River Circuit contained at that day an in- 
telligent and influential class of Methodists. Such 
men as Barnabas McHenry, Marcus Lindsey, John 
Fisk, and George W. Taylor, had left their stamp 
upon the people. It contained within its bounds 
the old Ferguson appointment — a favorite place of 
rest for Bishops Asbury and McKendree. The chief 
point of attraction was the old Beech Pork Camp- 
ground — -an annual rallying-point for preachers and 
people from about the year 1820. I attended four 
camp-meetings there in succession, from 1838 to 
1841, with the Rev. Jonathan Stamper in charge as 
Presiding Elder. At the meetings of 1838 and 1839 
the people's favorites, Jonathan Stamper and Hub- 
bard H. Kavanaugh, did the principal preaching. 
As these great camp-meeting preachers alternated 
from day to day, it was amusing as well as edifying 
to hear the comments and commendations of the 
older brethren. Now it was Stamper, and now 
Kavanaugh. Both were up to the mark all the time. 
The people had a feast of fat things, while they 
feasted us in return, in Old Kentucky style. As it 
was known in 1841 that Jonathan Stamper, who 
had served a term of four years on the District, was 
arranging to emigrate to Illinois, the people were 
wrought up to the highest point of interest and so- 



422 



Wester n Cavaliers. 



licitude. He had been on the same District some 
fifteen years before, and the thought of parting was 
sad. As the thousands seemed unwilling that any 
one else should occupy the stand at the popular 
hour, he preached each day at eleven o'clock. As 
you know what he was in his prime, when fully 
harnessed for camp-meeting work, you can better 
imagine than I can describe the character of his 
daily efforts and their effect upon the vast audiences 
that crowded the encampment. As I write I see, 
in my mind's eye, the noble form of that great law- 
yer and good man, Governor Charles A. Wycliffe, 
as he appeared on that Sunday — now sitting, and 
now. through excited feeling, standing up beside a 
beech-tree, within a few feet of the stand. Hon. 
Ben. Hardin, who never failed to attend our meet- 
ings, and was always a Methodist in creed, was at 
the outskirts of the congregation when the Sunday 
sermon began, but at its close he was close up to 
the stand, and afterward, in his emphatic way, de- 
clared that an angel from heaven could not have 
excelled the effort of his favorite preacher. If the 
love and offers of help from old-time friends could 
have kept him in Kentucky, he had never left the 
State. One brother offered to deed him a rich farm 
of two hundred acres if he would stay.' 7 

"William M. Grubbs was quite a young man when 
we first saw him; it was at the close of his second 
year in the Conference. He visited Shelbyville. and 
on Sabbath evening preached to a crowded audience, 
from Luke xxiv. 46. 47. We had never before heard 
so young a man attempt to preach. His keen black 



We stern Cavaliers. 



423 



eye, his gentle countenance, his earnest manner, and 
his forcible presentation of the truth, attracted our 
attention and won our heart. From that hour we 
watched his progress and rejoiced in his success, 
whether the fields of his labor were in Kentucky or 
elsewhere. 

Henry E. Pilcher entered the Ohio Conference in 
1829, and in 1837 was transferred to the Kentucky 
Conference. His appointments were the Newport 
and Covington Station, Shelbyville Station, and 
G-ermantown Circuit. At the Conference of 1840 
he located, but was readmitted in 1841, and trans- 
ferred to the North Ohio Conference. 

For several years the Church in Kentucky had 
steadily advanced in influence and in numerical 
strength. Since the Conference of 1837 an increase 
in the membership had been reported annually; 
but the success which crowned the labors of the 
ministry in winning souls to Christ, during the year 
upon which the Church was now entering, had no 
parallel in the records of the past. 

The Conference closed its session on the 23d of 
September, and only a few days elapsed until the 
preachers were at the posts to which they were as- 
signed. Isaac Collard, John James, George W. 
Taylor, and James King, were returned to the Dis- 
tricts over which they had presided the year before. 
William Gunn was appointed to the Shelbyville 
District, made vacant by the transfer of Mr. Stamper 
to Illinois. Benjamin T. Crouch was placed in 
charge of the Lexington District, where Mr. Gunn 
had been the leader; and Richard Corwine sue- 



424 



We stern Cavaliers. 



ceeded Mr. Crouch, on the Louisville District. Eich- 
ard D. Neale, who had labored so faithfully for four 
years on the Barboursville District, was sent to the 
Hardinsburg District — a new field, just formed — 
while William B. Landrum follows him amid the 
mountain fastnesses. The warm-hearted Edward 
Stevenson succeeds Richard Corwine on the Hop- 
kinsville District. 

The Church in Kentucky has but seldom fur- 
nished so able and efficient a corps of Presiding 
Elders as those we have just named. They were 
preachers of marked ability and burning zeal, and 
under their leadership the happiest results were an- 
ticipated. 

During the winter there were interesting revivals 
of religion in several portions of the State; but the 
grander conquests of the Church were to be seen 
and realized after the opening of the spring. 

In the Augusta District there was a net increase 
of six hundred and forty white and thirty-four col- 
ored members. The Greeijupsburg, G-ermantown, 
Fleming, Lewis, Little Sandy, Highland, and Shan- 
non Circuits were all refreshed with showers of 
grace. 

On the 23d of March * Walter Shearer writes, 
from the Greenupsburg Circuit, that " sixty or 
seventy" persons had joined the Church; and he 
adds: "The work is still going on and spreading." 
Although we have no farther announcement in ref- 
erence to the progress of the work from the faithful 
pastor, yet the Minutes show a net increase in that 

* Western Christian Advocate, April 22, 1842. 



Western Cavaliers. 



425 



charge of two hundred and nine white and twenty- 
seven colored members. 

Walter Shearer was one of the most laborious 
preachers in the Conference. He was born Septem- 
ber 12, 1813, and embraced religion in 1832. At 
the session of the Kentucky Conference in 1837 he 
was admitted on trial, having previously traveled 
under the Presiding Elder. His first appointment, 
after he entered the Conference, was to the Mount 
Vernon Mission, as the colleague of Alexander 
Robertson. In 1838 he was sent to the Litchfield 
Mission, and in 1839 to the Little Sandy Circuit, to 
which he was returned in 1840. In all these fields 
he showed himself an approved workman, and won 
many souls to Christ. We find him this year on 
the Greenupsburg Circuit, prosecuting his work 
with untiring zeal and extraordinary success. 

Jedidiah Foster had charge of the Flemingsburg 
Circuit, with William D. Trainer as his colleague. 
Under the ministry of these zealous preachers of 
the gospel, the net increase in this circuit was one 
hundred and forty-four white and twenty colored 
members. 

In the Lewis Circuit, to which Allen Sears and 
William H. Kimberlin were sent, there was, during 
the year, a fine religious influence, although the in- 
crease in the membership was small. 

The untiring William C. Atmore, who had charge 
of the Germantown Circuit, was greatly blessed. 
Mr. Atmore was born at Wednesbury, England, 
December 6, 1800, and was the son of the Rev. 
Charles Atmore, a distinguished preacher in the 



426 



Western Cavaliers. 



British Conference. In a letter to the author, Mr. 
Atmore says: 

"He who setteth the solitary in families caused 
my lot to fall in a godly household. The restrain- 
ing grace of God was always upon and before me; 
but in private prayer, when but eight years of age, 
my heart was strangely warmed, and I made a cov- 
enant to try and serve God fully. I w^as baptized 
into the Church wdien an infant, and, when ten 
years old, ratified the act of my parents by personal 
connection w^ith the Church, under the ministry 
of my reverend father. When eighteen years of 
age I was licensed to preach by the Quarterly Con- 
ference, at Salford, in Manchester, and in 1820 was 
recommended to the British Conference by the Rev. 
Jabez Bunting. I was married, November 14, 1822, 
to Miss Mary Wood, of Flixton, near Manchester, 
and now thank God for a union of near fifty-four 
years with her. In 1836 we came, w T ith our three 
children, to America, bringing with me my certifi- 
cate as a local preacher, from the Superintendent of 
the London Westminster District. We settled at 
New Richmond, Clermont county, Ohio, and I was 
recommended by the Quarterly Conference of that 
circuit to the Kentucky Conference, and received by 
that body, at Barclstown, in 1840. 

" My father was born at Heasham, a village on the 
coast of Norfolk, in 1759, and joined the Wesleyan 
Society, under Mr. Pilmore, in 1779. In 1781 he 
was received by John Wesley, and appointed to the 
Grimsby Circuit, in Lincolnshire. On December 11, 
1825, he preached his last sermon at Hackney, near 



We stern Cavaliers. 



427 



London, and on the 1st of July, 1826, lie entered 
the paradise of God, in the sixty-seventh year of 
his age and the forty-fifth of his ministry. 

" The light of my household God hath put out, 
and the- few years I may remain from her I shall 
spend in the family of my dear son, praying that I 
may lead them and myself, by God's grace, to lay up 
treasure in heaven." 

When Mr. Atmore came to Kentucky he was a 
preacher of much experience and decided ability. 
The Kentucky Conference received him gladly as a 
fellow-laborer in the Master's vineyard. His first - 
appointment was to the Falmouth Circuit, where 
his ministry was owned of God in the salvation of 
souls. In 1841 he was appointed to the German- 
town Circuit, where we have already met him. In 
this charge, as in the Falmouth Circuit, many were 
brought to Christ through his instrumentality. As a 
preacher he was clear and forcible. He understood 
the doctrines of the Bible, and defended them with 
signal ability. He was familiar with the practical 
duties of Christianity, and by precept and example 
enforced them on the people he served. Blessed 
with a sound experience, he made no compromise 
either with sin or a formal Christianity, but every- 
where urged the Pauline — the Wesleyan — doctrine 
of the witness of the Spirit. Such was William C. 
Atmore when we first knew him. His excellent 
wife, to whom he makes such a beautiful and touch- 
ing allusion in the letter we have quoted, was well 
worthy the place she occupied in the Church. We 
knew her well. Devoted to the Church, she will- 



428 



Western Cavaliers. 



ingly confronted any difficulty and submitted to any 
sacrifice to advance the cause of the Redeemer. No 
better, no purer woman than Mrs. Mary Atmore* 
ever lived. 

The Little Sandy Circuit shared, to some extent, 
the religious influence with which the Augusta Dis- 
trict was visited. At the second quarterly-meeting 
the pastor was assisted by Walter Shearer and sev- 
eral local preachers, under whose ministry a revival 
commenced, which continued during the remainder 
of the year, and in which many were brought to 
Christ. At the same time John P. Vance, a pious 
but eccentric preacher, was eminently useful in the 
Highland Circuit. 

William M. Crawford traveled this year on the 
Shannon Circuit. He was born in Scott county, 
Kentucky, February 7, 1811. Although blessed 
with one of the best of mothers, he utterly disre- 
garded her example and instructions until he had 
attained his majority. Participating in all the pop- 
ular vices of the clay, he wandered far from home 
and from God. Wherever he went he was followed 
by the Holy Spirit, while thoughts of home — his 
mother's prayers, to which he had so often listened, 
and her warm tears, with which his face had been 
baptized — rushing upon his memory, would make 
him resolve upon a better life. Again and again he 
formed the purpose to repent of his sins and re- 
turn to God, but again and again the siren voice of 
the tempter would efface his resolutions and lead 

*Mrs. Atmore died, in great peace, on the 17th of May, 
1875, in La Grange, Oldham county, Kentucky. 



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429 



him still farther from the paths of virtue. In the 
spring of 1834 he was powerfully awakened and 
happily converted. His conversion was sound and 
complete. 'Not a doubt entered his mind as to his 
acceptance with God. He was thoroughly changed. 
Simultaneously with his conversion he believed that 
God had called him to preach the gospel. Counting 
the cost, he resolved to enter upon the work. At the 
Conference of 1835 he was admitted on trial, and 
appointed to the Burlington Circuit, as the junior 
preacher. Handsome in person, his manners pol- 
ished, his address popular, his talents of a high order, 
and with a zeal burning for the salvation of sinners, 
he entered upon the duties of his high and holy 
office, and performed %ie work assigned him with 
fidelity and success. In 1836 he was sent to the Har- 
dinsburg Circuit, as the colleague of Joseph G. Ward, 
where he brought much fruitage to the Master. 
In 1837 he was appointed to the Mount Pleasant 
Mission, in the mountainous section of the State. 
From here we follow him to Bardstown, and thence 
to Columbia Circuit. In 1840 he traveled on the 
Fleming Circuit, with Henry F. Garey as his col- 
league. In all these fields he was exceedingly useful. 
His appointment to the Shannon Circuit; in 1841, 
was gratifying alike to himself and to the people. 
Several months elapsed, however — indeed, almost 
the entire year passed away — before he witnessed 
any favorable result from his labors in that charge. 
He had become discouraged, and writes: " The first 
three quarters of the year have passed away, and 
almost the fourth, and only thirty persons have 



430 



Western Cavaliers. 



joined the Church."* Grand and glorious results, 
however, were in reserve. About the first of Au- 
gust God visited his circuit in great mercy. At 
Mount Tabor, at Two Lick, and at Shannon, the 
work prevailed, and one hundred and eight persons 
passed from death unto life, and nearly that number 
were added to the Church. He was assisted at 
Mount Tabor by George S. Savage. 

In the Minerva Circuit equal success attended the 
ministry of Gilby Kelly and Lorenzo D. Harlan. In 
Minerva, in Dover, in Augusta, and in other por- 
tions of the circuit, the religious influence was felt, 
and many were converted and added to the Church. 

Although the Covington ^istrict does not record 
so great an increase as the Augusta District, yet, 
in reviewing the Church in that field, we find much 
to encourage us. 

In the Covington Station, Andrew J. McLaughlin 
reported an increase of one hundred and five mem- 
bers. In the Sharpsburg Circuit an increase of 
fifty-five white and five colored members is reported 
by Lemuel Veach. In the Paris and Crittenden 
Circuits — the former under the faithful ministry of 
George -W. Merritt, and the latter under that of 
Josiah Whitaker — many were added to the Church. 
At a meeting held at Mount Carmel Church, in the 
Paris Circuit, commencing August 13, " several were 
happily converted to God," and " thirty -two received 
on probation." 

In summing up the work in the Covington Dis- 
trict, John James, the Presiding Elder, writes : " I 
* Western Christian Advocate, September 16, 1842. 



Western Cavaliers. 



431 



may safely say it is in a state of general prosperity, 
and in some portions of it there are gracious re- 
freshings. In the Crittenden Circuit there is a glo- 
rious work; forty-five joined on probation at our 
last quarterly-meeting, and we left the work on the 
advance. At Covington there is a fine state of 
things. During a meeting held by Brothers Ham- 
line, Tomlinson, McCown, and others, some seven 
clays previous to, and together with, the quarterly- 
meeting, twenty- six joined on probation. Coving- 
ton is certainly in a far better condition than I have 
ever known it. At Newport we had a gracious 
meeting. About ten or twelve persons joined on 
probation, and the meeting closed most happily. 
At the Alexandria quarterly-meeting we had a good 
time." * 

In the Lexington District, the displays of divine 
power can scarcely be described. The territorial 
limits it embraced had for several years been the 
stronghold of Campbellism in the State. To achieve 
success was the purpose of the noble men who oc- 
cupied this field. 

The following letter from Benjamin T. Crouch, 
written August 29, 1842, presents a fair view of the 
difficulties which confronted the Church and con- 
spired to defeat its purposes : 

"While the tide of revival intelligence has been 
teeming from every quarter, through the medium of 
the Advocate, and our hearts have been cheered with 
the success of our brethren in their various depart- 
ments of the gospel work, there has been but little 

* Western Christian Advocate, May 20, 1842. 



432 



Western Cavaliers. 



communicated from the Lexington District to swell 
this stream of religious entertainment. The Con- 
ference-year opened upon us, in this division of the 
Christian field, under rather discouraging auspices; 
for the enemy truly came like a 6 flood/ and it ap- 
peared for a time that we should have to submit to 
the destructive immersion of a second deluge, without 
any salvation from the threatening billows, by a 
baptismal entrance into the ark of safety. This, 
however, did not trouble us much; for we believed 
the preaching of the latter-day 'Noah' — that 6 our 
Heavenly Father will give the Holy Spirit to them 
that ask him' — and we 'prayed unto the Lord our 
God,' and he heard us, and sent forth the baptismal 
fire of his gracious Spirit in many places, and evap- 
orated the suffocating floods with which the enemy 
attempted to overwhelm us, and our heads are still 
above the waves. Our prospects are evidently bright- 
ening, and have been for some months past, and the 
state of religious feeling is obviously rising in almost 
every part of the District. Most of the circuits 
have been recently blessed with very gracious re- 
vivals of the work of God, and the preachers h#ve 
a favorable prospect of leaving their charges in an 
advancing condition when they go up to the ap- 
proaching Conference. In some of those seasons of 
reviving the work was marked with much of the 
divine influence; convictions for sin were deep and 
pungent, conversions were clear and powerful, and 
additions encouragingly numerous. We have not 
been able, it is true, to vie with our brethren in some 
parts of the gospel-field, in extending the borders of 



Western Cavaliers. 



433 



our Zion and augmenting the hosts of Israel; but 
our most sanguine expectations have been greatly 
exceeded, and the Head of the Church is still going 
forth amongst his people in saving strength. The 
preachers are in the spirit of their work; they have 
applied themselves to the advancement of experi- 
mental religion, not only with a becoming zeal, but 
also with, much doctrinal ability and ministerial dis- 
creetness. Amongst the subjects of our revivals 
have been numbered several persons who (accord- 
ing to the tenor of a recent gospel) had sought re- 
generation beneath the yielding wave; but as they 
did not come up therefrom ' as pure as an angel/ 
but deceived, disappointed, and unhappy, they pre- 
sented themselves at the mercy-seat, and obtained, 
amidst the spiritual fires of the altar, the blessing of 
regenerating grace, which they had failed to obtain 
in the grave of waters. It is not, however, a matter 
of surprise that those should be disappointed who 
pervert the ancient order of things, and look for 
saving grace in that undevotional instrument of the 
divine displeasure by which the wicked antedilu- 
vians and the presumptuous Egyptians were de- 
stroyed, but which never was employed, by divine 
appointment, as the token of God's mercy. We are 
compelled to the opinion that it is the misleading 
voice of uninspired history, and not the ' sure word 
of prophecy,' that supports the immersionist super- 
structure. (Pardon the digression.) 

"We are now closing up our year's work. The 
last quarterly-meeting is far advanced, and the state 
of things is delightful. Our thoughts are now 
19 



434 



Western Cavaliers. 



turned toward the pleasant city of Lexington, where, 
in a few days, the laborious itinerants of Kentucky 
will assemble in Conference to make their reports; 
to devise plans and concert measures for the farther 
promotion of the cause of God; to receive their ap- 
pointments for another year, and then away to their 
work again. The reported accessions to the thou- 
sands of our Israel, in the several circuits and sta- 
tions of this Conference, will vary from a dozen or 
two up to several hundreds. Even in this District, 
where we had feared that we should not be able more 
than merely to hold our own, the Lord has been 
better to us than all our fears, and the numbers 
added to us will reach the cheering aggregate of 
twelve or fifteen hundred. And let no traducer of 
God's ministers say that the infants w r e baptize are 
comprised in these reported numbers. This envious 
imputation is being bandied over the land as one of 
the secrets of Methodist success, than which we 
know, and so does our Divine Master, nothing can 
be farther from the truth. We mark and foster the 
tender lambs, but reckon them not in the number of 
the laboring members of the flock. If selfishness 
and intolerance were turned out of the Church, 
there would be more room for brotherly love and 
Christian union. Let those wdiose liberality dis- 
poses them to hail the Christian in all w T ho exhibit 
the spirit of Christ pray that the power of grace 
may correct the heads and improve the hearts of 
those whose only standard of piety, for themselves 
and everybody else, is the measure of their own 
opinions. 



Western Cavaliers. 



435 



"Glory be to God. for all his benefits toward us! 
for the good that is done upon the earth, the Lord 
doeth it." * 

Every charge in this District was visited by 
showers of grace. The city of Lexington was fa- 
vored with a blessed revival, under the ministry of 
Richard Deering; in Frankfort, William Atherton 
was eminently useful; Peter Taylor and John B. 
Ewan, the preachers on the Winchester Circuit, 
witnessed the conversion of hundreds. Peter Taylor 
had for several years been an itinerant, and was dis- 
tinguished for his usefulness and zeal. Mr. Ewan 
had just entered the itinerant ranks, but was a 
young man of remarkable promise. 

John Collins Hardy was the preacher on the 
Mount Sterling Circuit. He was born, October 1, 
1809, in Ross county, near Chillicothe, Ohio. At a 
camp-meeting held at Brown's Camp-ground, in 
Ross county, in the autumn of 1825, he was power- 
fully converted, under the ministry of Francis Wil- 
son, and joined the Church, at the same time. In 
August, 1830, he was licensed to preach by John 
Collins, at the place where he first felt the pardon- 
ing love of Christ. At the session of the Ohio 
Conference of 1830 he was admitted on trial, and 
traveled two years, when, at his own request, he 
was discontinued. In a local sphere he was not 
happy. Believing it to be his duty to devote him- 
self exclusively to the work of the ministry, he 
came to Kentucky, and offered himself to the Con- 
ference, in 1837. As the colleague of William C. 

* Western Christian Advocate, September 9, 1842. 



436 



Western Cavaliers. 



McMahan, lie was appointed to the Lewis Circuit, 
and in 1838 to the Millersburg Circuit; thence we 
follow him to Paris, in 1839. At the Conference of 
1840 he located. Mr. Hardy remained local but one 
year. He was readmitted in 1841, and appointed to 
the Mount Sterling Circuit, where we now find him. 

From the time Mr. Hardy entered the itinerant 
field in Kentucky, he took rank with the ablest 
preachers in the Conference. Retiring in his dispo- 
sition, he placed upon his ministry a much lower 
estimate than was placed upon it by others. On 
the Mount Sterling Circuit, as in other charges, suc- 
cess crowned his labors. During the early part of 
the year indications were by no means favorable for 
a revival. On the first of May, however, he com- 
menced a meeting in a remote portion of the circuit, 
which continued four days, and resulted in twenty- 
three additions to the Church and about half that 
number of conversions. On the 4th of June he 
began a meeting at Poynter's Chapel, which con- 
tinued fourteen days, at which thirty-eight persons 
were added to the Church, and twenty professed re- 
ligion. On the 12th of July a meeting was com- 
menced in Slate, which lasted seven days, at which 
twenty persons were happily converted and thirty- 
three joined the Church. A camp-meeting held at 
Poynter's Camp-ground commenced August 18, at 
which one hundred and twenty persons joined the 
Church and eighty were converted to Ood. In this 
last meeting Mr. Hardy was assisted by Messrs. 
Veach, Wilson, Ewan, Taylor, and McMahan. 

Drummond Welburn had charge of the Athens 



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437 



Circuit. He was the son of Drammond and Mary 
Henderson Welburn, and was born in Accomack 
county, Virginia, October 22, 1818. His parents 
were devout Christians and earnest workers in the 
Methodist Church of which they were members. 
Two months before the birth of Drummond Wel- 
burn his father died, leaving the training of the son 
to the widowed mother. The influence of a religious 
home can scarcely be estimated. The teachings of 
his pious mother impressed his young heart, and 
led him, when only a child, to form resolutions for 
a better life. Attending Sunday-school when only 
seven years of age, he was awakened more power- 
fully than he had been before by reading the seven- 
teenth verse of the third chapter of John's Gospel, 
printed on a ticket which had been given him. 
When twelve years of age he removed to the city 
of Philadelphia, where he remained until September, 
1838. While in that city he attended the Methodist 
Sunday-school, occupying a portion of the time as 
teacher. In the autumn of 1838 he removed to 
Lexington, Kentucky. The first sermon he heard 
in the West was preached in Lexington by Bishop 
Waugh, the Sabbath after he reached that city — 
then on his way to the Kentucky Conference at 
Danville. Although surrounded by influences ad- 
verse to Methodism, the recollection of his mother's 
counsel and prayers led him to the Methodist Church, 
where he was a constant attendant. 

On a pleasant Sabbath afternoon, April 14, 1839, 
while walking alone outside of Lexington, he was 
arrested by the Holy Spirit and impressed with the 



438 



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terrible thought that this call, if unheeded, would 
be the last. For a few weeks he endeavored to 
seek religion without revealing either his feelings or 
purposes to any one; but failing to realize the par- 
doning love of Christ, on the 8th of May he deter- 
mined to ask the counsel and prayers of the people 
of God. That evening he went to the Methodist 
Church, and thence to two Presbyterian Churches, 
but found that there was no service at either of 
them. Unwilling to defer a question of such mo- 
ment, he passed on to the Baptist Church, where he 
heard a sermon from the Rev. Mr. Hurley, of Mis- 
souri, and an exhortation from Dr. Burrows. At 
the close of the service, with several others, he pre- 
sented himself for the prayers of the Church. On 
Thursday and Friday evenings he was still a penitent 
at the altar. After a conversation with Dr. Bur- 
rows on Friday night, he retired to his room and fer- 
vently pleaded for mercy. At eleven o'clock, while 
on his knees, reading the tenth chapter of Romans, 
he "was enabled by divine grace to believe with the 
heart unto righteousness.'' On the 26th day of the 
same month he joined the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 

Believing that he was divinely called to the work 
of the ministry, he was licensed to exhort December 
19. 1839, by George W. Brush, and licensed to preach 
May 18, 1840, by William Gunn. 

Several months elapsed from the time he was 
licensed to preach until the meeting of the Confer- 
ence. These were spent on the Burlington Circuit, 
as jr.nior preacher, Thomas Hall being in charge. 



Western Cavaliers. 



439 



On this circuit he gave full proof of his ministry, 
and had the pleasure of witnessing the conversion 
of forty persons at a camp-meeting held in Kenton 
county. 

Entering the Conference in 1840, he was sent, with 
Carlisle Babbitt, to the Winchester Circuit, where 
he was instrumental in winning souls to Christ. 
His appointment in 1841 was to the Athens Circuit 
— a new charge, without any membership. Within 
the bounds of his circuit there were thirty -one 
members of the Church, twelve of whom held their 
membership in Lexington, seventeen in the Win- 
chester Circuit, and two in the Paris Circuit. Be- 
fore the first clay of the following April Mr. Wei burn 
had organized five Societies and added forty-seven 
to the number already mentioned. The religious 
interest which had been awakened up to this time 
continued to widen and spread, until at the close of 
the year one hundred and eighty-six members were 
reported, most of whom had been powerfully con- 
verted. 

It is but seldom that we are permitted to record 
such triumphs of grace under the ministry of a 
preacher so young and inexperienced as was Drum- 
mond Welburn. He was zealous, faithful, and gave 
great promise of usefulness to the Church. 

Carlisle Babbitt and Moses Levi were the preachers 
on the Georgetown Circuit. Although the General 
Minutes report no change in the membership from 
the previous year, yet this circuit enjoyed much 
prosperity. 

The ministry of James D. Holding, on the Bur- 



440 



We stern Cavaliers. 



lington Circuit, was greatly blessed; while the Owen- 
ton Circuit, with Thomas Demoss and Marcus L. 
King, continued to prosper. 

Thomas Demoss was born May 5, 1818, and was 
converted in 1830. In 1835 he was admitted on 
trial into the Kentucky Conference, and appointed 
to the Madison Circuit, as junior preacher. In 
1836, with Thomas S. Davis, he was sent to the Salt 
River Circuit. It was during this year that we first 
saw Mr. Demoss. The Shelby ville Bible Society 
had employed us to distribute Testaments in Shelby, 
Anderson, and Speucer counties, to all the children 
under fifteen years of age who could read. While 
prosecuting this work in Spencer county we spent 
a night at the house of Isaac Miller, Esq., where 
we learned that Mr. Demoss would preach the fol- 
lowing day. It was here that we met with him, and 
we still remember the words of advice and of cheer 
which we received from his lips. 

At the Conference of 1837 his field of labor was 
the Germantown Circuit, as the colleague of Hiram 
Baker; in 1838 he was sent to the Leesburg Circuit 
alone, and in 1839 to the Sharpsburg Circuit. At 
the Conference of 1840 he was appointed to the 
Madisonville Circuit, and in 1841 to the Owenton 
Circuit, where we now find him. 

In the several charges occupied by Mr. Demoss 
he was a faithful and successful preacher. In the 
Owenton Circuit, as early as the 6th of April, he 
writes that "upward of one hundred persons had 
joined the Church, forty of whom had become mem- 
bers at New Liberty, fifteen at Owenton, and the 



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441 



remainder in other -portions of the circuit/ 3 * His 
colleague, Marcus L. King, was a young preacher of 
piety and zeal. 

At Carrollton, success still attended the labors of 
Fielding Bell; while in the Versailles Circuit — 
whose preacher had fallen at his post in the early 
part of the year — under the ministry of Thomas 
Rankin, Richard Deering, and other brethren, who 
devoted as much time to that charge as could be 
spared from their own work, many were brought to 
Christ. 

The total increase in the Lexington District was 
nine hundred and sixty-four white and four hundred 
and eighty-five colored. 

The Louisville District shows, in the General Min- 
utes, a decrease of seventeen hundred and seventy- 
five white and forty-one colored members. An 
examination of the appointments included within its 
territory, as compared with the former year, shows 
that the Elizabeth, Brandenburg, Hardinsburg, 
Hartford, and Yellow Banks Circuits had been 
taken from it, and constituted the larger portion of 
a new District, known as the Hardinsburg District. 
The actual increase in the Louisville District was 
nine hundred and twenty -six in the white and 
three hundred and forty-eight in the colored mem- 
bership. 

In the city of Louisville, from the Fourth-street 
Church the Fourth and Eighth-street charges had 
been formed. George C. Light was stationed at the 
former, and Thomas Bottomley at the latter. In 

* Western Christian Advocate, May 6, 1842. 
19* 



442 



We stern Cavaliers. 



both of these charges there were extraordinary re- 
vivals of religion, in which many were brought to 
Christ. The Louisville and German Mission, under 
the oversight of Peter Shmueker, continued to ad- 
vance in influence and in numbers. 

Elkanah Johnson, with George Riach for his col- 
league, in the Newcastle Circuit, won many souls to 
Christ. The preachers on the La Grange Circuit 
were William James and James S. Woolls. Under 
their ministry a net increase of one hundred and 
seven white and sixteen colored members was re- 
ported. 

The grandest achievements of grace were to be 
seen in the Jefferson Circuit. The preachers were 
Joseph D. Barnett and Charles B. Parsons. About 
three hundred persons joined the Church under 
their ministry, and about the same number were 
happily converted. It was under their administra- 
tion that Dorsey's Camp-ground was established. 
The first camp-meeting held on that spot, conse- 
crated by the conversion of hundreds, commenced 
about the middle of August, and continued six days. 
"About one hundred and twenty-five were converted 
to God, and ninety were added to the army of the 
Lord."* 

The Hardinsburg District was a new field, formed 
by a division of the Louisville District, with the 
addition of the Litchfield Circuit and the Morgan- 
field and Henderson Circuit — the former being taken 
from the Shelby ville District, and the latter from the 
Hopkinsville District. The energetic and zealous 



* Western Christian Advocate, September 9, 1842. 



We stern Cavaliers. 



443 



Richard D. Xeale was the leader of the hosts in this 
inviting field. 

The Elizabethtown Circuit, under the pastoral care 
of Hartwell J. Perry, enjoyed much prosperity. Mr. 
Perry was born in Shelby county, Kentucky, No- 
vember 1, 1806. His parents removed from Shelby 
to Henderson county in 1819. In the summer of 
1825, while at work alone on his father's farm, the 
subjects of death, the judgment, and eternity, pre- 
sented themselves to his mind, awakening serious 
reflections in reference to his responsibility to God. 
He promptly formed a resolution, from which he 
never swerved, to become a Christian. On the 16th. 
day of April, 1826, in company with his excellent 
mother, he joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
and on the 30th of the same month he experienced 
that " peace of Gocl, which passeth all understand- 
ing." In the autumn of 1829, at a camp-meeting 
in Livingston county, he realized the " fullness of 
the blessing of the gospel of Christ." Returning 
home, the altar was erected in his father's house, 
and morning and evening he led in family-prayer. 
Feeling that God required of him more than private 
membership in the Church, he frequently held meet- 
ings in the neighborhood, and endeavored to per- 
suade his associates to seek religion. On the 13th of 
March, 1830, he was licensed to preach at Rawley's 
Meeting-house, in Henderson county, by George 
McXeily. and was employed by him to travel tor the 
remainder of the year on the Henderson Circuit, 
with Clement L. Clifton. In this responsible posi- 
tion his labors were greatly blessed. His earnest 



444 



Western Cavaliers. 



appeals and warm exhortations persuaded many to 
abandon the path of sin and turn to God. 

At the session of the Kentucky Conference of 
1830 he was admitted on trial, and appointed to the 
Cumberland Circuit, with W. A. H. Spratt. This 
circuit embraced within its territory the counties of 
Knox, Harlan, Laurel, and Whitley, in Kentucky, 
and Campbell county, in Tennessee. Faithful in the 
performance of the duties assigned him, the young 
preacher was instrumental in winning many souls 
to Christ. After passing the winter in this rugged 
field, he was removed in the spring to the Somerset 
Circuit, to assist the zealous J ohn Sandusky. From 
the Conference of 1831 he was sent to the Danville 
Circuit, with the earnest and indefatigable John 
James, where he spent "a pleasant and profitable 
year." His next appointment was the Green River 
Circuit, where success still crowned his faithful min- 
istry. In the autumn of 1833 he was again sent to 
the Danville Circuit, where, after laboring a few 
months, his health failed, compelling him to retire 
from the work. 

In 1835 he was sufficiently restored to enable him 
to return to the effective ranks, and we find him 
in the Newport and Covington Station, as the col- 
league of the gifted William Phillips, where many 
were converted and added to the Church. We next 
follow him to Cynthiana, where he remained two 
years, still making "full proof of his ministry." 

In September, 1838, death came to his home and 
carried away its brightest jewel. She who for six 
years had followed his fortunes, amid privation, and 



Western Cavaliers. 



445 



toil, and sacrifice, was called to be the companion of 
the angels. 

His subsequent appointments were Bowling Green, 
Georgetown, and Elizabethtown (where we find him 
in 1841). In these several charges his ministry was 
abundantly blessed. On the Georgetown Circuit, 
from the time he entered upon his work until he 
closed his labors in that interesting charge, at the 
expiration of two years, a deep religious influence 
pervaded the community. Among the stars that 
will deck the crown of his rejoicing, when God's 
jewels are gathered, will be found many of the In- 
dian youths who at that time were students at the 
Choctaw Academy, located in Scott county. Invited 
to preach at the academy, he accepted the invitation. 
At first the gospel seemed to exert but a feeble influ- 
ence upon the students, and the preacher entertained 
serious thoughts of surrendering the appointment. 
Unwilling to do so without a valid reason, on his 
third visit he proposed to all who desired an interest 
in his prayers, and wished to be saved, to give him 
their hand. The scene which followed gladdened 
the hearts of angels and sent a thrill of joy through 
the realms of bliss. More than sixty of these sons 
of the forest gave the preacher their hands, and, 
falling on their knees, cried out for mercy. Re- 
quested by the principal of the academy to preach 
in the afternoon, he did so, when the altar was 
crowded with anxious inquirers after the truth. 
Forty-two of them joined the Church at that time, 
and the good work progressed until one hundred In- 
dians were added to the membership — among them 



446 



We stern Cavaliers. 



John Page, who became a preacher and entered the 
Kentucky Conference in 1842, and went as a mis- 
sionary to his own nation. 

Later in the year, at a camp-meeting held near 
Georgetown, one hundred and five persons were 
added to the Church, and twenty-four others within 
four days after the meeting closed. 

On the Elizabeth Circuit, Mr. Perry continued to 
deliver his message with the same energy and suc- 
cess that had distinguished him elsewhere. Bold, 
fearless, energetic, true to his Master's cause, God 
crowned his labors with success. 

The Big Spring and Hardinsburg Circuits — the 
former with Peter Duncan and Charles Henclrickson 
as the preachers, and the latter under the pastoral 
care of the sweet-spirited Seraiah S. Deering — en- 
joyed times of refreshing; while John Miller, on 
the Morganfield and Henderson Circuit, was em- 
inently successful. The net increase in this District 
was three hundred and six white and forty-four col- 
ored members. 

If any other District presented a larger increase 
during the year, none was favored with a more 
general revival of religion, than the Shelbyville. 
The good work commenced almost immediately 
after Conference closed, and before the winter had 
passed, upon every charge in the District, with a 
single exception, showers of grace had fallen, and 
many had been brought to Christ. With the open- 
ing of spring the work spread in every direction. 
Its influence was overwhelming. In the Shelby 
Circuit, under the ministry of Napoleon B. Lewis 



W ESTERN C A V A L I E R S . 



447 



and John W. Fields, a meeting was held in Simp- 
sonville, commencing early in March, at which there 
were thirty-eight accessions to the Church. At the 
close of this meeting Mr. Lewis returned to his home 
in Christiansburg, and during his stay concluded to 
preach a few sermons, under which a revival com- 
menced; and there, also, thirty -eight persons cast in 
their lot with the people of God. The third quar- 
terly-meeting commenced June 6, and was held at 
Pleasureville. Having no church-edifice there, the 
Methodists had been holding service in the Baptist 
Church; but the members closed their doors, and 
declined to allow the quarterly-meeting to be held in 
their house. The Presbyterian Church was situated 
about one mile from the village, and its use was 
kindly tendered to Mr. Lewis. The meeting was 
protracted nine days, during which time one hun- 
dred and nineteen persons were added to the Church. 
For the convenience of the neighborhood the meet- 
ing was transferred to Pleasant Grove Church, and 
thence to Christiansburg, and thirty persons were 
received in addition. Xor did the work stop here. 
More than three hundred persons had been con- 
verted and enrolled their names on the Church- 
book, when, in August, a camp-meeting was held at 
Crane's Camp-ground, in Henry county, which con- 
tinued eight days, and thirty persons " passed from 
death unto life" and joined the Church. Two 
weeks later the fourth quarterly -meeting com- 
menced at CardwelPs Camp -ground, when sixty 
more witnessed a good confession. The last meet- 
ing before Conference was held at Hebron, at which 



448 



Western Cavaliers. 



this zealous and faithful evangelist was unable to be 
present. The meeting was conducted by Messrs. 
Gunn, Ralston, Tevis, and Fields. Here more than 
twenty persons professed faith in Christ. The Min- 
utes show a net increase of more than six hundred 
white and colored in this circuit. 

On the Salt River Circuit, to which Richard I. 
Dungan and William R. Price were appointed, on 
the 22d of April a meeting commenced in the Chap- 
lin neighborhood, which resulted in the conversion 
of forty persons. William Gunn, the Presiding 
Elder of the District, conducted the meeting, as- 
sisted by Robert Fisk, William D. Matting, and 
Jesse Bird. 

In the Shelbyville Station, Thomas Ralston 
enjoyed a year of great prosperity; while in Bards- 
town Nathanael H. Lee was eminently useful. 

Mr. Lee was born, in Campbell county, Virginia, 
April 29, 1816. When only a child he came, with 
his parents, to Kentucky, and settled in Monroe 
county. He was educated chiefly in Glasgow, Ken- 
tucky, meeting the expenses of his course by teach- 
ing school at intervals. Under the ministry of 
Clinton Kelly and John C. C. Thompson, in 1836, 
he was awakened to a sense of his condition as a 
sinner, professed religion, and joined the Methodist 
Church. 

IsTo sooner had iTathanael H. Lee realized the par- 
doning love of the Saviour than he believed it to be 
his duty to call sinners to repentance. To him the 
world had many charms, and, attracted by its tinsel 
and pageantry, he had dreamed of happiness in its 



Western Cavaliers. 



449 



pursuits. Endowed with a superior intellect and 
with untiring energy, lie might have attained to 
eminence in any of the learned professions. The 
Church, however, had claims on him, and in enter- 
ing its communion he brought all — talents, energy 
— to the foot of the cross. He was licensed to ex- 
hort in 1837, under the administration of James 
King, and licensed to preach, in 1838, by Jonathan 
Stamper. At the Kentucky Conference of 1838 he 
was admitted on trial and appointed, with Gilby 
Kelly, to the Hopkinsville Circuit. His second ap- 
pointment was to the Mount Pleasant Mission, in 
the south-eastern portion of Kentucky. To this 
ruo-o-ecl field he was returned in 1840. In 1841 he 
was stationed in Bardstown. 

From the admission of Mr. Lee into the Confer- 
ence it was apparent to all who made his acquaint- 
ance that he was destined at an early day to occupy, 
a commanding eminence in the Church. His un- 
compromising devotion, his fervent zeal, his self- 
sacrificing spirit, his love of the Church, and his 
superior intellect, qualified him as a leader among 
his brethren. 

On the Hopkinsville Circuit, in his earliest min- 
istry, he defended the peculiar doctrines of Meth- 
odism with an ability that has but seldom been 
equaled, while many were gathered into the fold of 
Christ who will be stars to deck the crown of his 
rejoicing in the hereafter. 

His labors on the Mount Pleasant Mission were 
very arduous; but, ever faithful to the trust com- 
mitted to him, he knew no sacrifice that he did not 



450 



Western Cavaliers. 



cheerfully make for the Master. For two years he 
was seen to thread the valleys of the Cumberland 
and to cross its rock-ribbed mountains, to preach 
the unsearchable riches of Christ. In the open 
forest, in the log school-house, in the cabins of the 
humble, he proclaimed the tidings of a Redeemer's 
love, and under his ministry hundreds gathered 
around the cross. 

If the ministry of Mr. Lee was blessed in the 
lowlands and in the mountains of Kentucky, he was 
equally successful in the pleasant village of Bards- 
town. Among the many who were brought into 
the Church during his pastorate in this place was 
James B. Hardin, the second son of Hon. Ben. 
Hardin. In a letter to the author, Mr. Lee says: 

" While at West Point. James B. Hardin was con- 
verted and joined the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
This was a short time before he graduated. On his 
return home he revealed the happy change to his 
mother, informed her that he had joined the Church, 
and believed himself divinely called to preach the 
gospel, and felt strongly impressed that he ought to 
become an itinerant preacher. Although Mr. Har- 
din and his family were Methodists in sentiment, 
and their house had been for many years the home 
of traveling preachers, yet none of them, up to that 
time, had become members of the Church. 

"The family was among the most wealthy and 
influential in the State, Mr. Hardin having scarcely 
a peer as a lawyer. A handsome fortune had been 
spent in the education of their son. He had enjoyed 
all the advantages of educational training that could 



Western Cavaliers. 



451 



be afforded in the United States, and I am of the 
opinion that he spent some time at one of the uni- 
versities in Europe. He was endowed with a 
princely intellect, and bade fair to be one of the 
most brilliant young men in the State. He was all 
that his parents could wish him to be. He was the 
idol of his family. 

"It was very natural that they should oppose his 
entrance upon the life of a traveling preacher. Such 
a result would have contravened all the hopes they 
had entertained of him. In such a calling there 
could be no worldly honor, no glory, no wealth. It 
would necessarily, especially at that time, be a life 
of toil and hardship, spent mainly among the poor 
and obscure, who had no honor to confer, no emol- 
ument to bestow. They believed in and admired 
Methodism; they loved Methodist preachers, and 
delighted to afford them the noble hospitality of 
their comfortable home. They believed there was a 
necessity for Methodism; the wants of the world 
could not be met without it; it was their beau ideal 
of a Church ; yet they could not consent that their 
son should become a Methodist preacher. Other 
people's sons might become such — this w^as all right. 
If their son had not been so brilliant, so well edu- 
cated, so accomplished, it would not have been so 
hard. But their son was so gifted, and so well fitted 
to fill a large place in the eyes of the world, that 
they could not think of his consigning himself to the 
humble obscurity of an itinerant preacher. They 
were too successful in their opposition. He yielded, 
though against his convictions, to the worldly views 



452 



We ST ERN 



Cavaliers. 



of his family; but he never saw a happy hour after- 
ward. 

" He continued in the United States Army till the 
close of the Sac and Fox Indian war (where he ac- 
quitted himself well), when he resigned his commis- 
sion in the army and entered upon the study of 
medicine, which, with his wonderful capacity for the 
acquisition of knowledge, he accomplished in an 
unusually short time — graduating at two medical 
colleges, with the highest distinction. He entered 
upon the practice of his profession under most fa- 
vorable auspices, and soon had a good practice. In 
a year or two he abandoned the medical profession, 
and entered upon the study of the law. In a brief 
period of time he finished his course of study, and 
graduated, having no peer in his class. He entered 
upon the practice of his profession, and soon stood 
among the ablest advocates of the country. He had 
been but a few years engaged in the practice of law 
when he consented to become a candidate to repre- 
sent ISTelson county in the lower house of the State 
Legislature. He was elected by a large majority. 
He served his county in this capacity for several 
terms, and always with distinguished ability. He 
soon attained the reputation of the most promising 
young; man in the State. In the meantime, he had 
been happily married to Miss Chinn, daughter of 
Major Chinn, of Harrodsburg, Kentucky, a distant 
relative. 

" Without any premonition, as far as known, and 
with the most brilliant worldly prospects before him, 
while delivering a speech, he was suddenly attacked 



Western Cavaliers. 



453 



with a hemorrhage of the lungs. This attack being 
repeated, and growing more violent, and medical aid 
being of no avail, he determined to seek a tropical 
clime as a means of relief. 

" Being appointed to the Bardstown Station in 
1841, when I arrived I learned that, with his wife, 
he had gone to Cuba, seeking in that mild and salu- 
brious climate a restoration of his health. But it all 
proved in vain: he constantly grew worse. Early 
in the spring he hastened home, anxious to breathe 
his last in his native land, in the midst of his kindred 
and friends, and to be buried with his ancestors. 

" When, through the opposition of his family, Mr. 
Hardin had determined to give over entering upon 
the Christian ministry, he determined not to locate 
his membership in the Church; and though, during 
the dreary years from the time of his fatal decision 
in regard to the ministry to the time of his sickness, 
he had maintained an unimpeachable moral life, yet 
he had long been destitute of religious comfort, and, 
besides this, had become skeptical as to some of the 
fundamental truths of Christianity, thus illustrating 
the true saying that when we are destitute of the 
experience of religion we are in a fair way to reject 
its doctrines. 

"In a short time after Mr. Hardin's return from 
Cuba, I was sent for to see him. I had heard much 
of his great ability and learning, and that he had 
given great attention to the study of the Bible and 
of theology; I had learned, also, that he had become 
very skeptical. Being young and inexperienced, I 
had great fear of approaching him on the subject of 



454 



Western Cavaliers. 



religion. When I called on him he seemed to appre- 
ciate my feelings, and sought at once to relieve me 
of my embarrassment and make me easy. In this 
he at once succeeded. In a very respectful manner 
he stated objections to some of the doctrines held 
by our Church, especially the vicarious atonement 
of Christ. Feeling that I was hardly competent to 
engage in a discussion on this subject, and thinking 
that such a discussion with a man in his condition 
would be out of place, I waived it, and said to him 
that, whatever objections to Christianity as we hold 
it might be raised, there was one thing that he would 
admit — that he could not reconcile it to his reason, 
or conscience, to substitute atheism, or deism, or 
Romanism, or Mohammedanism, or any form of 
heathen religion, in its place; that, with him, it was 
Christianity or no religion at all, and that no specu- 
lations about doctrines would now avail; that he 
must put the matter to a decisive personal test, and 
that very soon; that no time was to be lost. I shall 
always believe that I was divinely directed in mak- 
ing this reply. He never referred to his doubts as 
to the truth of Christianity any more, though I vis- 
ited him, and read the Scriptures to him, and con- 
versed and prayed with him, almost daily for several 
months. His concern for his soul rapidly increased, 
until finally the peace and joy which had thrilled 
his heart some years before were fully restored. In 
the meantime, he again united with the Church, be- 
fore the congregation, on the holy Sabbath, being 
barely able to reach the church in his carriage, and 
give his hand, and receive the hand of fellowship 



We stern Cavaliers. 



455 



from his Christian friends, and then return to his 
residence, not to be taken thence till the spirit was 
with God, and his mortal remains were borne to the 
grave to await the resurrection of the just. . 

" He survived until shortly after the close of my 
term at Bardstown, and then died in great peace 
and triumph, telling his mother, and wife, and the 
family, as he had perhaps told them before, that 
since the time at which he determined not to preach 
the gospel he had been a miserable man; that a 
fearful 'icoe' had pursued him and rested upon him 
all the time; that his constant restlessness, as the 
result, explained the fact that he had gone from one 
profession to another, vainly seeking relief from a 
consciousness of the divine displeasure, but failing 
to find it; that in this way he had lost his religious 
enjoyment, and had finally fallen into skepticism, 
which only increased his wretchedness. His mind 
had been overtasked with excessive study, and this, 
in connection with the conviction that he had diso- 
beyed the divine call to preach the gospel, had worn 
down his physical constitution until it could bear no 
more; and thus the hemorrhage of the lungs and his 
untimely death. It was a matter of the keenest re- 
gret and self-reproach that his life had been a failure, 
as it had not been devoted according to the order of 
Divine Providence. The effect upon his family was 
wonderful. His wife was a devoted Christian and a 
Methodist when he married her. His venerable 
mother had joined the Church at a watch-meeting, 
the first day of the year 1842. During the same 
year his three sisters — Mrs. Helm, Mrs. Palmer, and 



456 



Western Cavaliers. 



Mrs. Dixon — -joined the Church; also, Col. Riley, 
his brother-in-law, whose wife had for some years 
been the only member of the family in the Church. 
Soon afterward his only brother, Rowan, became a 
member, and, some years after, his father joined the 
Church just before his death." 

The Lebanon Circuit was served by John San- 
dusky and William M. Humphrey. 

John Sandusky was born, January 11, 1798, in 
what was then called Jefferson (now Marion) county, 
Kentucky. As early as 1776 his parents emigrated 
to Kentucky, and settled on Pleasant Run, and es- 
tablished " Sandusky Station." 

In 1817, before he attained his majority, he was 
awakened, converted, and joined the Methodist 
Church. We are not familiar with the circum- 
stances that led to his conviction and conversion; 
but, from the time the great change was wrought, he 
was zealous and useful in the Church. We do not 
find his name in the list of itinerants until 1829, yet 
previous to that time he occupied a prominent posi- 
tion as a preacher of the gospel in the neighborhood 
in which he had been reared. His first appointment, 
after entering the Conference, was to the Green 
River Circuit, as the colleague of Nehemiah A. 
Cravens. In 1830 he was appointed to the Somer- 
set Circuit, as the junior preacher, with the sweet- 
spirited James King. In 1831 his field of labor was 
the Green River Circuit, with Hooper Evans and 
Thomas Lasley. In 1832 he was placed in charge 
of the Lebanon Circuit, with Thomas Hall, and in 
1833 he was the colleague of George W. Fagg, on 



We stern Cavaliers. 



457 



the Salt River Circuit. At the Conference of 1834 
he located. 

No preacher in the Conference labored with greater 
fidelity than did John Sandusky. Enjoying in the 
highest degree the confidence of all who knew him, 
possessing talents of a high order, familiar with the 
doctrines of Christianity, forcible and zealous in 
the presentation of the great truths of religion, 
deeply pious, and devoted to the Church, no man in 
the itinerancy gave promise of greater usefulness. 
In the prime of his life he was compelled by feeble- 
ness of health to retire from the active duties of the 
itinerancy. For seven years he remained in the 
local ranks, often preaching beyond his strength, 
and evincing his devotion to the cause of his Divine 
Master by his abundant labors and uncompromising 
zeal. In 1841 he reentered the Conference, and was 
appointed to the Lebanon Circuit, in which he was 
born and brought up, and had resided while local, 
and in which he was beloved by all who knew him. 
The wisdom of the appointment was fully vindi- 
cated in the success which this year distinguished his 
ministry. Hundreds were awakened and brought 
to Christ. 

The Lawrenceburg Circuit, under the ministry 
of Robert Fisk, largely increased in membership. 

The Harrodsburg District, under the leadership 
of George W. Taylor, shared largely in the religious 
influence that was sweeping over the commonwealth. 
In Harrodsburg and Danville Station there was a 
decrease in both the white and colored membership, 
but every other charge reported large accessions. 
20 



458 



Western Cavaliers. 



The circuit in the vicinity of Danville, which for 
several years had been known as the Danville Cir- 
cuit, was divided, and formed the Stanford and Sal- 
visa, and part of the Lancaster, Circuits. Clinton 
Kelly was sent to the Stanford Circuit and Munford 
Pelley to the Salvisa Circuit. In each of these 
charges there were gracious revivals of religion. 
The Lancaster Circuit, which included all the terri- 
tory formerly embraced in the Mount Vernon Cir- 
cuit, and of which Thomas Rankin had charge, also 
enjoyed refreshing times. Charles Duncan, on the 
Irvine Circuit, and Samuel P. Cummins, on the 
Hustonville Circuit, performed the duties assigned 
them with fidelity and success; while Aaron H. 
Rice, on the Liberty Circuit, was instrumental in 
bringing many souls to Christ. 

Nowhere in the bounds of this District were such 
conquests made as in the Madison Circuit, under 
the ministry of Edwin Roberts and Robinson E. 
Sidebottom. Immediately after the Conference the 
circuit was divided, forming the Richmond Station, 
which was the field to be occupied by Mr. Roberts, 
while Mr. Sidebottom had charge of the circuit. 
Promptly entering upon their work, they prosecuted 
it with commendable zeal and extraordinary success. 
As true yoke-fellows, they worked together in har- 
mony, and were instrumental in the accomplishment 
of great good. During the year, and in the midst 
of a career of usefulness, Edwin Roberts fell; but he 
fell at his post, " with sword in hand and armor on." 
However, the revival which commenced under his 
ministry did not abate. "Although God buried a 



Western Cavaliers. 



459 



master- workman, the work still went on. The 
preachers from Transylvania University, at Lexing- 
ton; John H. Linn, from Danville; and Evan Ste- 
venson, from Georgetown, came to Richmond, and 
many a precious gem was borne away from the do- 
minions of death and hell.""* The Madison Circuit 
was in a flame; every appointment was on fire ! At 
Old Providence the revival was more extensive and 
powerful, perhaps, than at any other point, 

The net increase in the District was seven hundred 
and twenty-five white and one hundred and eight 
colored members. 

Although there was a decrease in the Bowling 
Green District, yet there was great cause for thanks- 
giving in several charges in that field. On the 
Greensburg Circuit, under the ministry of J ohn C. 
C. Thompson, a holy and zealous preacher, many 
were brought from darkness to light; while on the 
Glasgow Circuit, to which John Atkinson and James 
I. George were appointed, many were converted and 
added to the Church, chiefly under the labors of the 
junior preacher — Mr. Atkinson having remained on 
the circuit but a short time. 

The Scottsville Circuit had been divided, forming 
the Scottsville and Bowling Green Circuits. To 
these two charges Zachariah M. Taylor and Albert 
Kelly were appointed. At the same time Joel Peak 
was traveling the Burksville Circuit, and Elihu 
Green the Wayne Circuit. In all these charges 
there were "times of refreshing from the presence 
of the Lord/ 5 although there were no extensive re- 
setter from Robinson E. Sidebottom. 



460 



We stern Cavaliers. 



vivals of religion. Wesley GL Montgomery, on the 
Columbia Circuit, witnessed the awakening and con- 
version of many souls. 

In the Hopkinsville District, Edward Stevenson 
was the Presiding Elder. Although an itinerant 
preacher since 1825, this was his first appointment 
as a Presiding Elder. He brought to this important 
office not only a ripe experience, but talents of a 
high order and a burning zeal. Entering upon his 
work in the spirit of his Master, he traveled his 
extensive District, not only holding his quarterly- 
meetings, but preaching everywhere as he had op- 
portunity. The gospel proclaimed by him was " the 
power of God unto salvation." Under his ministry 
sinners were awakened, penitents converted, and be- 
lievers sanctified. The District was soon in a blaze. 
In Franklin, Russellville, Hopkinsville, Princeton, 
and other towns, during the winter, the displays of 
divine power were extraordinary. Hundreds were 
added to the Church. 

In Russellville, one of the most pleasant and re- 
fined villages in Southern Kentucky, Eli B. Crain 
was stationed. Methodism had been planted in this 
community at an early day, and had grown and 
flourished under the auspices of the ablest men in 
the Conference. In no town in this portion of the 
State did it have such a hold upon the affections, or 
occupy so commanding an eminence in the confi- 
dence, of the people as in Russellville. 

Eli B. Crain was born, in Mercer county, Ken- 
tucky, March 24, 1807. When quite a child he re- 
moved to Barren county, and was placed under the 



Western Cavaliers. 461 

care of James Culp, a local preacher, in Glasgow. 
Under the teachings of this good man he was led to 
reflect seriously on the subject of religion, and on 
the 19th of September, 1824, at a camp-meeting 
held at Bethel, he was converted to God. His call 
to the work of the ministry was simultaneous with 
his conversion. Without the advantages of even an 
ordinary education, he was eager to warn sinners to 
flee the wrath to come, and availed himself of every 
opportunity to persuade his fellow-men to turn to 
God. Endowed with an intellect of a high order, 
and with an eloquence that was remarkably per- 
suasive, and with a burning desire to save souls, he 
was anxious to enter the itinerant ranks and devote 
his life to the one work of doing good. With a 
constitution naturally delicate, and impaired by af- 
fliction, he hesitated to offer himself to the Confer- 
ence, lest he might prove unequal to the life of sacri- 
fice and toil incident to the work of the faithful 
itinerant. For nearly two years he traveled under 
the direction of George W. Taylor, a Presiding 
Elder; but, failing in health, he was obliged to quit 
the field. 

Sallying his strength, in 1833 he offered himself 
to the Conference, and was accepted. His first ap- 
pointment was, with Jesse Sutton, to the Glasgow 
Circuit, in which he had been brought up. In 1834 
he was sent to the Newcastle Circuit, where he re- 
mained two 3 7 ears. In 1836 his appointment was to 
the Shelby Circuit, to which he was returned in 1837. 
In the several charges he had filled he was deserv- 
edly popular and eminently useful. As a preacher 



462 



"We stern Cavaliers. 



he occupied a commanding eminence, and as an ex- 
porter he had but few peers among his brethren. 
Simple-hearted, good and true, he was universally 
beloved. It was while he had charge of the Shelby 
Circuit that we made his acquaintance. His family 
resided in Shelbyville, where we were living — then a 
youth, preparing to enter the ministry. Mr. Crain 
was sick; we visited him, and, at his request, at- 
tended several of his appointments in his circuit, 
rather to inform the people that he was sick than to 
occupy his place.* At the close of the year he was 
placed on the list of the superannuated. Unwilling 
to be idle, he returned to the effective ranks in 1839, 
and was sent to the Franklin Circuit, and in 1840 to 
the Georgetown Circuit. In both of these charges 
he made full proof of his ministry, winning many 
souls to Christ. We have already met with him in 
Russellville, where he was appointed in 1841. Only 
a few weeks elapsed after he had entered upon his 
work before there were indications of a revival 
of religion. Commencing with his first quarterly- 
meeting, the services were protracted from day to 
day, and then from week to week, until seventy-four 
persons were brought to Christ. 

The preachers on the Elkton and Logan Circuit 
were John B. Perry and Albert H. Bedford. 

John B. Perry was born, in Belfast, Ireland, May 
23, 1813. His father came to America in 1816, and 
settled in the city of Philadelphia. In 1830 John 
B. Perry joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
and soon afterward found " the pearl of great price." 
*This was our first work as an itinerant preacher. 



Western Cavaliers. 463 



Before lie was nineteen years old he was licensed to 
preach, and for a short time labored in the Phila- 
delphia City Mission. In the autumn of 1836 he 
came to Kentucky, and was employed by William 
Gunn, the Presiding Elder, as junior preacher on 
the Newcastle Circuit, to assist Richard Peering. 
It was while he traveled on this circuit that we ac- 
cepted an invitation to accompany him to several of 
his appointments. At the Conference of 1837 he 
was admitted on trial into the Kentucky Conference, 
and appointed to the Shelby Circuit. In 1838 his 
field of labor was the Barboursville Circuit, in the 
south-eastern portion of the State. At the Confer- 
ence of 1839 he was sent to the Hartford Circuit, 
and in 1840 to the Hopkinsville Circuit. In 1841 
he was appointed to the Elkton and Logan Circuit, 
with Albert H. Redford as his colleague. 

Associated with Mr. Perry in the work of the 
ministry, we had every opportunity to form a proper 
estimate of his worth. Fully consecrated to the 
work to which he was divinely called, he devoted 
himself to it with a oneness of purpose worthy a true 
minister of Jesus Christ. In his character there 
was a child-like simplicity that attracted the atten- 
tion and commanded the confidence of all who knew 
him. He was an Israelite indeed, in whom there 
was no guile. As a preacher, from the time we first 
heard him, he occupied a commanding eminence. 
He read but few books, but these were carefully se- 
lected, and were read well. With the Bible he was 
perfectly familiar, and from its sacred treasury drew 
"things new and old/' His preaching was plain, 



464 



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his arguments supported by the word of God. Ex- 
emplary in his deportment, his life was a daily 
comment on the religion he professed and taught. 
In every sense an itinerant preacher, we never heard 
him express a preference for any appointment, nor 
an unwillingness to serve the Church in any field to 
which he might be assigned. 

The Elkton and Logan Circuit embraced the fer- 
tile lands of Todd and Logan counties, and contained 
a community distinguished for their intelligence and 
culture. No circuit in the Conference was blessed 
to a greater degree with efficient local preachers than 
was this. Caleb N. Bell, John P. Moore, Jordan T. 
C. Moore, William S. Evans, and Warren M. Pitts, 
occupied prominent positions in the local ranks. 
Warren M. Pitts had served the circuit as a supply 
the previous year; indeed, although a local preacher 
in name, he was an itinerant in reality. With nat- 
ural gifts of a high order, and with an anxiety to do 
good, he had filled several appointments under the 
direction of Presiding Elders. In 1835, soon after 
his conversion, he served the Bowling Green Circuit, 
and in 1836 the Logan Circuit. He traveled on the 
Greenville Circuit in 1837, on the Nashville Circuit 
in 1839, and in 1840 on the Elkton and Logan Cir- 
cuit. In all these charges his ministry was honored 
and blessed in the conversion of souls. 

In entering this interesting field, the preachers 
were confronted with many things to discourage 
them. Although portions of the circuit had from 
time to time been blessed with revivals, there had 
been no extensive ingathering into the Church for 



We stern Cavaliers. 



465 



several years. Campbellism was at the height of its 
influence. With an energy which we have seldom 
seen displayed it was pushing its conquests, and, 
under able " evangelists/' doing every thing in its 
power to make "disciples." Experimental religion 
was attacked from its pulpits, and the "mourners' 
bench" made the subject of ridicule. The pro- 
claimed of this theory visited every neighborhood, 
and with great zeal endeavored to turn away from 
the truth the unwary and unsuspecting. 

The Baptist Church, too, in this section, was not 
friendly to Methodism. The differences between 
these two denominations of Christians, in reference 
to their teachings on baptism, had been arrayed 
before the people. The Baptist Church was strong 
and influential. Baptist preachers of more than or- 
dinary ability had boldly attacked the peculiar views 
of Methodism, as to "Who are the proper subjects 
for Christian baptism? " and " What is the scriptural 
mode?" In these attacks Campbellism, in perfect 
harmony with them on these questions, had joined. 
But little attention had been paid to these disput- 
ants — the Methodist Church deeming it better, for 
the peace of the Churches, to decline any participa- 
tion in the controversy. It was under these circum- 
stances that John B. Perry and Albert H. Bedford 
commenced their labors on the circuit. 

The winter passed with but little, if any, change. 
The congregations were small, and, with the excep- 
tion of about twenty persons who had joined the 
Church, no special interest was manifested on the 
subject of religion. On the 12th of March the 
20* 



466 



Western Cavaliers. 



second quarterly-meeting commenced in the town 
of Elkton, and was protracted for seventeen days. 
The pulpit was filled, during the time, chiefly by 
Edward Stevenson, the Presiding Elder, and John 
B. Perry, the preacher in charge. About sixty per- 
sons were converted, and forty -eight joined the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. Among those who 
made a profession of religion and joined the Church 
were a gentleman in the eighty-fifth year of his age, 
his grandson and wife, and great-granddaughter. 

During the progress of the meeting a prominent 
preacher in the Campbellite Church visited Elkton, 
and preached in the court-house at such hours as 
were not occupied by the Methodist Church. The 
revival did not please him; but his arguments and 
his ridicule were alike harmless. 

The revival in Elkton was only the beginning of 
a rich harvest, in which many were brought to the 
knowledge of the truth. A religious influence went 
out in every direction, until hundreds were brought 
to Christ. 

A few weeks later the junior preacher was re- 
quested by the Church to preach, in different parts 
of the circuit, sermons on the subjects and mode of 
Christian baptism. In compliance with this request, 
early in May, he preached a sermon in Keysburg, 
at the close of which he baptized seventeen children, 
the father of one of them being a Baptist, but the 
mother a member of the Methodist Church. His 
next appointment was announced for Pleasant 
Grove, to be filled on the third Sabbath in June; 
but, previous to this time, he was requested to preach 



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467 



on the same subject at Bell's Chapel, one of the most 
prominent appointments on the circuit. 

The church was crowded to its utmost capacity, 
and many persons were standing at the doors and 
windows, outside the house. Soon after the an- 
nouncement of the text a stranger walked into the 
church, seated himself in the altar, and, with paper 
and pencil, began to take notes of the sermon. It 
was Elder Robert Williams, of Harmony, Ten- 
nessee, an able polemic in the Baptist Church. At 
the close of the sermon he challenged the young 
preacher to discuss with him the points at issue, at 
Pleasant Grove. The challenge was accepted, and 
the 22d of June appointed as the time for the de- 
bate. 

Several years had elapsed since the question of 
baptism had been openly discussed in this portion 
of the State, by a Pedobaptist preacher. Fifteen 
years before, John Johnson had met Jeremiah Yar- 
deman, a celebrated Baptist preacher, in Hopkins- 
ville and in other places, and compelled him, by the 
force of truth, to retire from Southern Kentucky. 
During this long period Methodism had reposed 
upon the laurels it had won. 

'No event had transpired in this community for 
many years that excited so much interest as did this 
discussion. The concourse that attended it was im- 
mense. The debate was to continue for several 
days; but, on the afternoon of the second day, Mr. 
Williams, without consulting his opponent, an- 
nounced to the audience that, so far as he was con- 
cerned, the discussion would close on that day. 



468 



We stern Cavaliers. 



Remonstrance, argument, appeal, were alike una- 
vailing to induce him to remain longer. 

At the close of the year there was a net increase 
in the circuit of two hundred and two white and 
sixty-one colored members. 

In other portions of the District there was a fine 
religious influence. The General Minutes show an 
increase in this District of ninety-eight white mem- 
bers and a decrease of one hundred and twenty-six 
colored members. The increase was much larger. 
The transfer of the Morganfield and Henderson 
Circuit to the Hardinsburg District makes a differ- 
ence of several hundred. 

In the Barboursville District the increase was two 
hundred and four white and thirty-five colored mem- 
bers. The Barboursville, Williamsburg, Prestons- 
burg, and Louisa Circuits, show an increase; in the 
other charges there are fewer members than were 
reported the previous year. 

The entire increase in the Conference was five 
thousand two hundred and sixty-seven white and 
one thousand seven hundred and eighty-three col- 
ored members. 

In that portion of Kentucky belonging to the 
Memphis Conference the religious awakening was 
equal to that in any other section of the State. 
The Paducah Circuit had been divided, and the 
flourishing town of Paducah made an independent 
charge. To this station James Young was ap- 
pointed. At a meeting held in Paducah, early in 
December, twelve persons joined the Church and 
eight professed religion. During the winter there 



Western Cavaliers. 



469 



was considerable religious interest, from time to time. 
The quarterly-meeting which was held in February 
was a season of refreshing. Thomas Smith, the 
Presiding Elder, was present, and preached with 
great power. At this meeting twenty-four were 
added to the Church, and ten were happily con- 
verted. The Hickman, Paducah, and Wadesboro 
Circuits were in a continual blaze. John S. Wil- 
liams and William E. Rogers, on the Hickman Cir- 
cuit; James M. Major and John A. C. Manly, on the 
Paducah Circuit ; and Alexander C. Chisholm and 
William H. Seat, on the Wadesboro Circuit, labored 
with diligence and success. In a letter to the South- 
western Christian Advocate, dated September 23, 1842, 
Thomas Smith, the Presiding Elder, writes: "We 
are now in the midst of the most glorious revival I 
have ever witnessed. In the bounds of this District 
there have been, the present year, about two thou- 
sand souls converted to God and added to the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church. The aged and the young 
have been brought in. One man said to be one hun- 
dred and five years old was powerfully converted to 
God. The wise and sage philosopher, with the hum- 
ble African, has found peace in believing, and the 
work is still increasing. We have but little opposi- 
tion; all heads, hands, and hearts unite in carrying 
on the glorious work. It would delight you to wit- 
ness the glorious work, as it moves on to victory — 
to see the wily politician, the crafty lawyer, the stern 
judge, the industrious planter, the busy merchant, 
the towering orator, the military chieftain, with the 
young men and maidens, all coming to Prince Im- 



470 



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manuel, and passing on their way to the rest that 
remainetk to the people of God." 

The net increase in this portion of Kentucky was 
nine hundred and seventy-nine white and twenty- 
three colored — making the total increase in the State 
six thousand two hundred and forty -six white and one 
thousand eight hundred and six colored. 



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471 



CHAPTER XL 

FEOM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1842 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1843 

Saw ye not the cloud arise, 

Little as a human hand ? 
Now it spreads along the skies, 

Hangs o'er all the thirsty land: 
Lo ! the promise of a shower 

Drops already from above; 
But the Lord will shortly pour 

All the Spirit of his love. 

THE Kentucky Annual Conference assembled in 
the Old Medical Hall, in the city of Lexington, 
on the morning of the 14th of September, 1842. 

Bishop Waugh was present and presided during 
the session of the Conference. 

Thomas IT. Ralston was elected Secretary, and 
William M. Crawford Assistant Secretary. 

Benjamin T. Crouch and George W. Brush were 
appointed the Committee on Public Worship. 

John Christian Harrison, Hartwell J. Perry, and 
Nathanael H. Lee, were appointed Stewards of the 
Conference. 

George W. Brush and James D. Holding were ap- 
pointed the Committee on Memoirs. 



472 



Western Cavaliers. 



John Tevis, George W. Brush, and Carlisle Bab- 
bitt, were appointed the Committee on Missions. 

Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, Edward Stevenson, and 
Gilby Kelly, were appointed a committee to prepare 
a Pastoral Address "to the members and friends of 
the Church/' 

At this session of the Kentucky Conference, Wil- 
liam C. Dandy, Samuel L. Robertson, George W. 
Smiley, Jas. H. Dennis, Hiram T. Downard, Samuel 
D. Baldwin, Isham R. Finley, Learner B. Davison, 
Henry M. Linney, George Hancock, James Kyle, 
John Bier, Thomas H. Lynch, Josiah L. Kemp, 
David Wells, William Ahrens, John Page, John 
Yanpelt, George Taylor, and Allen McLaughlin, 
were admitted on trial. 

The Kentucky'Conference has but seldom received 
on trial a class of preachers equal in talent to the 
present. 

Of those who were admitted at the previous Con- 
ference, William M. Humphrey, William H. Kim- 
berlin, Charles Duncan, Mitchell Land, William 
Conway, and James J. Williams, retired from the 
itinerant service, the most of them on account of ill 
health. 

Albery L. Alderson and Absalom Woolliscroft 
located. 

Thomas Waring, George W. Pagg, Stephen Har- 
ber, Zadok B. Thaxton, John Tevis, John Denham, 
James Ward, George S. Savage, Peter Taylor, and 
Wesley G. Montgomery, were placed on the list of 
the superannuated. 

Albery L. Alderson, who located this year, was 



Western Cavaliers. 473 



one of the ablest preachers in the Conference. "We 
have no record of the date of either his birth or 
conversion. He entered the itinerant ranks in 1833, 
and was appointed to the Wayne Circuit, with James 
King. In 1834 he was sent to Bowling Green Cir- 
cuit, as the colleague of John Redman. In 1835 he 
was appointed to the Henderson Circuit, and in 1836 
to the Madisonville Circuit. He located in 1837. 
He remained in a local sphere only one year, when 
he was readmitted and appointed to the Elizabeth- 
town Circuit. In 1839 he was placed on the list of 
supernumerary preachers, where he remained until 
he located, in 1842. 

From the time Mr. Alclerson entered the ministry 
he took rank with the first preachers in the Confer- 
ence. An untiring student, without the advantages 
of more than an ordinary education in early life, he 
became not only a complete master in English lit- 
erature, but a thorough Greek scholar. Familiar 
with the Bible — its doctrines, its duties, its expe- 
rience — he unfolded its beauties, bringing from its 
sacred treasury "things new and old.*' As a po- 
lemic he had no superior among his brethren. In 
the field of religious disputation he was a giant. 
No opponent ever successfully met him in debate. 
With signal ability he wielded the weapon of truth, 
and exposed error and false doctrine, in whatever 
garb presented. We have heard him when, with a 
calmness as gentle and soft as the evening zephyr, 
he discussed his subject: and we have listened to 
him when, rising to the loftiest heights of oratory, 
he held spell-bound and entranced the vast assem- 



474 



We stern Cavaliers. 



blage that sat before him. Beneath his mighty ap- 
peals entire audiences were often moved, and many 
resolved upon a better life. In the pulpit he had 
but few equals. Endowed with an intellect of the 
highest order, with a fertile imagination and a mind 
richly stored with religious truth, thousands hung 
in breathless silence upon his lips while he delivered 
his message of life — of death. Under his faithful 
ministry hundreds were brought to Christ and made 
happy in a Saviour's love. It is to be regretted that 
such a man — warm-hearted, zealous, devoted to the 
noble work to which God had called him — should 
be compelled by any cause to retire from the active 
service. His health, however, was unequal to the 
duties of his high and holy office. 

The name of George S. Savage appears this year 
on the list of superannuated preachers. He was 
born in Vanceburg, Lewis county, Kentucky, Feb- 
ruary 2, 1814. He was baptized in infancy by Wil- 
liam McMahan, and joined the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, under the ministry of Samuel Yeach, in 
Germantown, Kentucky, December 7, 1827, and on 
the 28th of May, 1828, in the same village, was hap- 
pily and powerfully converted to God. 

Believing it to be his duty to preach the gospel, 
he was licensed by William Adams, in Frankfort, 
Kentucky, September 5, 1835. At the Conference 
for that year, held in Shelbyville, he was admitted on 
trial. Before entering the Conference Mr. Savage 
had never attempted either to preach or to exhort. 
In becoming a preacher he met with opposition at 
home. His father, who was not a Christian, was 



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475 



unwilling that his son should enter the ministry, 
and especially to become a traveling preacher.* 

Mr. Savage was appointed to the Versailles Cir- 
cuit, as the colleague of the gifted Thomas N". Ral- 
ston. A serious attack of bilious fever prevented 
him from entering upon his work until near the 
last of October. His first sermon on the circuit, and 
the second he had attempted to preach, was deliv- 
ered in Jessamine county, at the "Pocket." His 
text was "Pray without ceasing," f and it was cer- 
tainly an appropriate one. Mr. Savage expected to 
meet the preacher in charge, that evening, in Nich- 
olasville. On his way thither he overtook a plainly- 
dressed countryman, who accosted him, and said: 

"You are the young brother who preached for us 
to-day, at the ' Pocket? ; " 

"I preached there," was the modest reply of the 
young preacher. 

"I think, my young brother, you had better go 
home. I do n't think you will ever make a preacher." 

Feeling the responsibility of the work to which 
he had pledged his energies and his life, and con- 
scious perhaps that he had failed to fulfill the ex- 
pectations of those to whom he had ministered, the 
words of the stranger were calculated to dampen 
his ardor and impair his zeal. However, he met 
with Mr. Ralston that evening, who offered to him 
words of cheer, and encouraged him to prosecute 
the duties assigned him. 

Although he occasionally met with discourage- 



* Three years later George S. Savage received his father into 
the Church, fl Thess. v. 17. 



476 



We stern Cavaliers. 



ments, yet the year was fruitful in experience and 
blessings. His journal contains the following rec- 
ord: "Traveled two thousand three hundred and 
twenty -three miles; preached two hundred and 
twenty -five sermons; received fifty into Society; 
read over fifteen thousand pages; obtained thirty- 
three subscribers for the Advocate; sold a good many 
books; did not miss an appointment, or experience 
an hour's confinement from sickness. To God be 
all the glory!" 

His second appointment was to the Minerva Cir- 
cuit, as the colleague of Martin L. Eads. The min- 
istry of these zealous laborers was greatly blessed. 
Dover, a small village on the Ohio River, was dis- 
tinguished for the wickedness of the community. 
Bishop Morris, then residing in Cincinnati, visited 
this village during the winter, and preached the 
gospel. The simplicity of his style, and his great 
earnestness, elicited the complimentary remark from 
a plain man, " Why, the Bishop is just like other 
men." At a meeting held at this place, in which 
John Collins — often called the St. John of Meth- 
odism — bore an active part, many were brought to 
Christ. The entire community was aroused, awak- 
ened sinners cried for mercy, and shouts of triumph 
from souls new-born to God went out upon the air. 
It was during this meeting that Campbellism, be- 
coming alarmed, resolved to bring its forces to bear 
against the advances that Methodism was making. 
Under the leadership of two of their preachers, one 
hundred or more marched into the town and began a 
series of meetings. They remained, however, only 



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477 



a few days, and then left, after administering the 
ordinance of immersion to a few persons, in the 
Ohio River, having cut the ice to do so. 

It w r as Sunday morning. A rough, uncouth man, 
distinguished for his profanity, who was engaged in 
hauling logs to the mill, while passing the place of 
worship made all the noise he could for the purpose 
of disturbing the service. The congregation was 
singing : 

Nay, but I yield, I yield ! 

I can hold out no more : 
I sink, by dying love compelled, 

And own thee conqueror ! 

These words caught his ear, and rang like a funeral- 
knell; they may have been familiar to him. He 
could not rest, clay nor night. At length, sad and 
uneasy, he came one evening to church, and, taking 
Mr. Savage aside, explained to him his feelings, and 
how he happened to become awakened. Words of 
comfort were whispered, and he was soon happily 
converted. A new house of worship was erected 
during the year, and one hundred and fifty-seven 
persons were added to the Church. 

The tw^o years of active service in the itinerant 
ministry had greatly impaired the health of Mr. 
Savage, and after his admission into full connection 
he requested and was granted a location. Besides, 
it was his purpose that the ministry should be the 
one great business of his life, and he desired to make 
a more thorough preparation for its arduous and re- 
sponsible duties. He remained in a local sphere 
until the autumn of 1839, when he was readmitted, 



478 



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and appointed to the Germantown Circuit, as junior 
preacher. The preacher in charge failing to come 
to the work, the entire duties of the pastorate de- 
volved on Mr. Savage. The circuit was a large one, 
having nineteen appointments, to be filled every 
three weeks. With greatly impaired health, he 
prosecuted his labors. However, it was not until 
the winter and spring had passed that any extraor- 
dinary displays of divine power were realized. 

On Sunday, June 7, 1840, Joseph M. Trimble, Pro- 
fessor of Languages in Augusta College, preached 
in the Shannon Church. The sermon was one of 
great power. Six persons joined the Church, and 
the meeting was protracted during the week. On 
the following Sabbath forty persons enlisted under 
the banner of the cross. "The power of God came 
down upon the congregation. If the baptism of the 
Holy Ghost was not visible, it was most sensibly felt. 
The faces of many shone as the faces of angels, and 
some could scarcely realize whether they were in the 
body or whether they were out of the body. The 
whole community was stirred on the subject of re- 
ligion. During the meeting one hundred and four- 
teen persons, embracing all ages and classes, joined 
the Church."* Among those converted at this 
meeting was Joseph W . Ridgell, afterward a preacher 
of the gospel. The influence of this meeting ex- 
tended to other portions of the circuit.f During 

* Letter from the Rev. George S. Savage to the author. 

f At the meeting at Shannon Mr. Savage was assisted by his 
uncles, James and Francis A. Savage, Samuel Veach, Calvin 
W. Lewis, and Joseph M. Trimble. 



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479 



the year three hundred and seven persons joined the 
Church. 

In 1840 his field of labor was the Shannon Cir- 
cuit, being a portion of the circuit he had traveled 
the previous year. Although his health was still 
feeble, with untiring energy he toiled and labored to 
accomplish good. 

In Sardis, a small village in his charge, there was 
a gracious revival of God's work. Such was the 
influence of this meeting,- and such the manifesta- 
tions of the Holy Spirit, that persons were converted 
in the class-room, in the prayer-meeting, during 
preaching, and on their way to and from the church. 
More than fifty persons found the "pearl of great 
price," and during the year one hundred and twenty- 
five persons enlisted in the service. 

Unable longer to perform the active duties of an 
itinerant preacher, in 1841 he was placed on the list 
of the superannuated, where we find him in 1842. 

We have reported for missions one thousand four 
hundred and seventy -eight dollars and sixty -three cents, 
less than half the amount collected the previous 
year, which was three thousand seven hundred and 
twenty-eight dollars. 

Of those who had received appointments in 1841, 
two had fallen at their post. Peter 0. Meeks and 
Edwin Roberts had answered the roll-call above. 

Peter 0. Meeks was born April 16, 1815. He 
embraced religion and joined the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church in 1834. He spent several years as a 
student in Augusta College, where he graduated 
with great credit. In 1838 he was admitted on trial 



480 



Western Cavaliers. 



into the Kentucky Conference, and appointed to the 
Fleming Circuit, as the colleague of James Ward. 
In 1839 he was stationed, with Richard Deering, at 
Danville and Harrodsburg, and in 1840 was sent to 
the Barboursville Circuit. His last field of labor 
was the Versailles Circuit, where we find him in 
1841. 

But few young men in the ministry promised 
greater usefulness to the Church than did Peter 0. 
Meeks. From the time he was converted he felt it 
to be his duty to devote himself to the ministry, and 
his years of toil and study in college had reference 
to this responsible work. In the fields he had oc- 
cupied he was useful and beloved. In his inter- 
course with society he was kind and courteous, and 
as a Christian zealous and devoted. In the pulpit 
and in the performance of his pastoral duties he ex- 
hibited that singleness of purpose essential to suc- 
cess. Before he reached the meridian of life he was 
cut down. He died in the early part of the year, in 
hope of a blessed immortality. 

Edwin Roberts was born, in Bedford county, Vir- 
ginia, January 31, 1816. His parents were John 
and Alary Roberts. His mother was a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, a woman of deep 
and consistent piety, who endeavored to instil into 
the mind of her son the principles of religion, while 
he was yet a child. Listening to the instructions of 
his pious mother, Edwin Roberts became impressed 
with the importance of religion, and at ten years of 
age reflected seriously in reference to his future state. 
From time to time, at intervals, he was awakened 



Western Cavaliers. 



481 



to a sense of his condition as a sinner, but refused 
to listen to the warning voice of the Holy Spirit, 
until he reached his twentieth year. In the mean- 
time, his father had removed to Tennessee, and set- 
tled in Montgomery county, where he was converted 
July 6, 1835. 

Brought up in the Methodist Church, Mr. Roberts 
identified his fortunes with that Communion; and 
believing it to be his duty to call sinners to repent- 
ance, he resolved to become an itinerant. His early 
education had been confined to the elementary 
branches, but by close study at home, and by teach- 
ing a small country-school, he had greatly improved 
his mind; yet such was his diffidence that he felt 
reluctant to enter upon a work involving such grave 
responsibilities. "Woe is unto me, if I preach not 
the gospel!" fully awakened him to a sense of duty, 
and in the autumn of 1836 he was admitted on trial 
into the Kentuckj^ Conference. 

His first appointment was to the Hopkinsville 
Circuit, as the colleague of James H. Brooking. In 
1837 he was sent to the Morganfield Circuit, to 
which he was reappointed in 1838. At the Confer- 
ence of 1839 his field of labor was the Versailles 
Circuit, where he remained for two years. In 1841 
he was sent to Richmond, where he closed his labors 
and his life.* 

Few young men have preached the gospel who 

*His appointment was to the Madison Circuit, with Robinson 
E. Sidebottom as his colleague. The Presiding Elder divided 
the circuit, and formed Richmond Station, in which he placed 
Mr. Robert^, while Mr. Sidebottom had charge of the circuit. 
21 



482 



Western Cavaliers. 



have achieved so much in so short a period as did 
Edwin Roberts. From the time he entered upon 
the work of the Christian ministry he devoted him- 
self to it with uncompromising energy and untiring 
zeal. He had fully counted the cost, and, undaunted 
by sacrifice, privation, and suffering, resolved to 
meet the responsibilities incident to his calling, and 
to attain success. In his first field of labor crowds 
thronged to hear him preach and to catch the words 
of invitation as they fell from his burning lips. His 
calm, clear arguments, his earnest appeals, and the 
persuasive power of his eloquence, brought many to 
the altars of the Church and to Christ. 

On the Morganfield Circuit, he was like a flaming 
fire. Wherever he preached the Church was aroused 
from its apathy, sinners were awakened, and peni- 
tents converted to God. For two years his strong 
and forcible sermons, his powerful exhortations, his 
earnest appeals, and his pure and holy life, were be- 
fore the people of Union and Henderson counties, 
admonishing them of sin, and urging them to a 
better and brighter inheritance. From here we fol- 
low him to the Versailles Circuit, where for two 
years he preaches with a power and success that 
scarcely find a parallel in the annals of the past. 
During the first year in which he preached in that 
charge more than four hundred persons were brought 
to Christ through his ministry, while in the sur- 
rounding country he was the honored instrument 
in bringing hundreds from the paths of sin. He 
seldom preached a sermon, or made an appeal, but 
some wanderer came back to God. In labors abun- 



We stern Cavaliers. 



483 



clant, he took no rest, knew no ease, but gave time, 
talent, energy, all to the glorious cause to which he 
was pledged. His journal, now before us, shows an 
amount of labor almost unequaled, and a devotion 
and zeal that no opposition could dampen. Day 
and night found him at his post. At every point 
where his Divine Master bade him assault, he re- 
solved, with God's help, to conquer. Impediments 
and obstacles formed no part of his creed, but served 
only to nerve him for the contest. In all his efforts 
to advance the Redeemer's kingdom his piety shone 
with undiminished luster. In every department of 
ministerial work he excelled. Whether in the pul- 
pit, in the altar, in the social circle, or mingling 
with the community, he recognized it as his chief 
business to persuade men to be reconciled to God. 

He entered upon his work in Richmond in due 
time. We find the following entry in his journal: 

"Friday, October 8.— Packed up and left. It was a 
time of sorrow with my wife and sisters. They had 
been left, when small, without a mother ; had grown 
up together, and now they must part. Well, well, 
we all have to part in this life; but there is a place 
where we shall part no more." 

The next evening found him in Richmond, and on 
Sunday, the 11th. a crowded audience assembled at 
the court-house to hear the words of life from this 
faithful evangelist. At night he preached in the 
Baptist Church. 

From this period there was no abatement in his 
labors. In Richmond, at Bethel, at Centerville, at 
Bethlehem, at Providence, he lifted his warning 



484 



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voice, and many turned to God. He holds a meet- 
ing at Lancaster, where, assisted by John H. Linn 
and Richard Deering, of whom he speaks with great 
tenderness, forty-nine white and thirty colored per- 
sons unite with the Church. During the winter 
every moment is employed in study, in preaching, 
in exhorting, in pastoral visiting, or in something 
by which the cause of the Redeemer may be ad- 
vanced. In his journal he makes frequent mention 
of Robinson E. Sidebottom, his fellow-laborer, to 
whom he was greatly attached. 

On the first day of January, 1842, he makes the 
following entry in his journal: 

"This is a new year; the old one is gone. I feel 
like commencing a new course of piety. I feel the 
importance of more love and humility, and that I 
may do better than I have done in my past life. 
May I be a better Christian and a better minister! 
Lord, give me grace!" 

Every page of his journal shows his close com- 
munion with God and his oneness of purpose to 
achieve success. He says: 

"Friday, April 8. — Left Nicholasvilie, and came to 
Richmond. Have felt rather unwell for some days. 
Left Mary behind. 

"Saturday, April 9.— Went to Providence to quar- 
terly-meeting, and preached at eleven. Brother 
Taylor, the Presiding Elder, preached at half-past 
four. I came to town in the evening; felt quite 
stupid and dull. 

"Sunday, April 10. — At eleven preached in town, 
a searching sermon; at two met Bible-class; at 



Western Cavaliers. 



485 



night preached, with liberty, to a very attentive au- 
dience. 

"Monday, April 11.— Rode to Providence, and 
preached at eleven, with some liberty. 

"Tuesday, April 12. — Rode to town; wrote; read." 
Here his journal closes. 

He continued to preach with unabated zeal until 
about the first of May. His sermons were "in 
thoughts that breathe and words that burn." About 
the last of April he went to Centerville, in Madison 
county, eight or ten miles from Richmond, where 
he preached his last sermon. He complained very 
much during the day, and was soon confined to his 
bed. Through twenty-eight days of illness he was 
calm, patient, and serene as a summer evening. His 
disease was typhus fever. He slept a great deal, and 
seemed to suffer but little bodily pain. His col- 
league, Mr. Sidebottom, visited him a few days after 
his illness began, and asked him if he thought he 
would recover. He replied: "I do not know, but 
it makes no difference to me whether I live or die; 
for/' said he, " 6 to live is Christ, but to die is gain.' " 
The Friday and Saturday before his death he re- 
joiced almost incessantly in the love of Christ. A 
short time before he breathed his last he was asked 
how he felt in reference to eternity. His reply was, 
"All is well." He asked for a drink of water, which 
was given him. After he had drank he recited the 
language of the Saviour to the Samaritan woman: 
" ' Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give 
him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall 
give him shall be in him a well of water springing 



486 



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up into everlasting life. 7 ?? Upon being informed by 
bis physician that his case was hopeless, he imme- 
diately requested all in the room to kneel down, 
when he called on a minister who was present to 
pray. During the prayer lie rejoiced aloud, while 
his* countenance was bright and angelic. On the 
28th of May, 1842, he sweetly fell asleep in Jesus. 

Although the revivals of religion were not so 
powerful nor so extensive this year as they were 
daring the past, yet there was much to encourage 
the Church. 

In the Maysville District there was a net increase 
of three hundred and twenty-five white and sixty- 
eight colored members. John Christian Harrison 
succeeded Isaac Collard on this District, and in every 
department of duty belonging to the responsible 
office of Presiding Elder he was a master and a 
workman. The only change made in the arrange- 
ment of the work was the formation of a German 
Mission, called Maysville and West Union, to which 
John Bier was appointed, and which, at the next 
Conference, reported sixty-eight members. At the 
close of the first round of quarterly-meetings, Mr. 
Harrison writes: " Several of the charges have en- 
joyed seasons of revival since Conference. As far 
as I can ascertain, near three hundred have been 
received on probation, in the bounds of the District, 
during the first quarter/ 5 * 

On the 9th of March Isham R. Finley writes from 
Maysville: " There has been an accession to the 
Church here, since Conference, of between fifty and 



Western Christian Advocate, February 3, 1843. 



Western Cavaliers. 



487 



sixty. 7 ' * In the Germantown Circuit, Thomas Ran- 
kin held a meeting in Washington, commencing on 
the 9th and closing on the 19th of December, at 
which thirty-one persons joined the Church. The 
Little Sandy Circuit, under the ministry of Samuel 
P. Cummins, was greatly blessed. At the first 
quarterly-meeting, held at Mr. Buchanan's, on the 
Big Sandy Circuit, commencing December 24, nine 
persons joined the Church and several were con- 
verted; and at a watch-meeting, held a week later 
at the same place, "twenty-five or thirty persons 
presented themselves as seekers of religion, and at 
the close of the meeting six others joined the Church, 
making fortv-one since Conference." In the Flem- 
ingsburg Circuit, William D. Trainer and William 
C. Dandy were pushing the battle to the gates of the 
enemy. Before the winter had passed more than one 
hundred persons joined the Church. In the Lewis 
Circuit, the eccentric and gifted Lorenzo D. Harlan 
witnessed very great prosperity. On the Highland 
Circuit, Edmund M. Johnson met with great suc- 
cess; and on the Shannon Circuit, Jedidiah Foster, 
gifted, popular, useful, and beloved, had "times of 
refreshing/ 5 

The Covington District was still under the leader- 
ship of John J ames. As early as the 81st of October 
George C. Light announced, through the columns 
of the Western Christian Advocate, that thirty-two 
persons had joined, the Church in Covington. On 
the 27th of December he writes that "upward of 
two hundred and twenty have been added to the 
* Western Christian Advocate, March 17, 1843. 



488 



Western Cavaliers. 



Church since the commencement of the present Con- 
ference-year." On the 28th of January, 1843, he 
writes again: "The glorious work is still progress- 
ing in Covington, without any visible abatement. 
At least three hundred have been added to the 
Methodist Episcopal Church within the past four 
months, and at no former period have our prospects 
been brighter." This revival continued throughout 
the greater part of the year, dispensing its blessings 
on that community.* 

On the 22cl of November, only a few weeks after 
the close of the Conference, John Miller writes from 
Cynthiana, that "above forty persons have been re- 
ceived" into the Church. John Miller was an able 
and useful preacher of the gospel. He came from 
the State of Ohio to Kentucky in 1840. That year 
he was admitted on trial into the Kentucky Confer- 
ence, and appointed to the Morganfield and Hen- 
derson Circuit, where he remained two years. In 
1842 we find him on the Cynthiana Circuit. Before 
lie entered the ministry he was distinguished as an 
able practitioner of medicine. But few men have 
risen more rapidly in the* itinerant field than John 
Miller. From the time he entered the ministry he 
took rank with the most promising young preachers 
in the Conference. Zealous, active, enterprising, 
and deeply pious, lie not only won a reputation for 
himself, as an able preacher, but was instrumental 
in the accomplishment of much good. On the Mor- 
ganfield and Henderson Circuit he was greatly be- 



* For a sketch of George C. Light, see " History of Methodism 
in Kentucky." 



Western Cavaliers. 



489 



loved, and through, his instrumentality many were 
brought to Christ. In the Cynthiana Circuit he was 
also useful and beloved. 

On the Sharpsburg Circuit the labors of Josiah 
Whitaker were greatly blessed; and on the Millers- 
burg Circuit John W. Riggin witnessed a gracious 
outpouring of the Holy Spirit. James C. Crow had 
charge of the Alexandria Circuit, where many were 
horn to God. 

In Newport, during the winter, under the minis- 
try of John Gr. Bruce, there was considerable pros- 
perity. On the 9th of February he writes to the 
Western Christian Advocate: " During the past few 
weeks we have received about thirty on probation, 
in this city/' Mr. Bruce was transferred from the 
North Ohio to the Kentucky Conference in 1841, 
and was stationed in Newport, where we still find 
him the following year. Before he came to Ken- 
tucky he had spent several years in Ohio as a trav- 
eling preacher, where his ministry had been greatly 
blessed. In Kentucky, where he had been but a 
very short time, his labors had been crowned with 
success. 

In the Crittenden Circuit, under the ministry of 
Samuel Veach, a good and true man, much good 
was accomplished. 

In the Lexington District, which the year before 
was visited with such extraordinary displays of di- 
vine power, revivals still blessed the Church. In 
the city of Lexington, Richard Deering continued 
to attract large assemblies, while the membership of 
the Church constantly increased. During the year 
21* 



490 



Western Cavaliers. 



one hundred and ninety-five persons were brought 
into the Church. 

A few weeks previous to the Conference the fourth 
quarterly-meeting for the Versailles Circuit was held 
in Mcholasville. Peter 0. Meeks, the zealous pas- 
tor, had fallen at his post. Benjamin T. Crouch, 
the Presiding Elder, requested the assistance of Mr. 
Deering and William Atherton in conducting the 
meeting. " It was a time of great power and grace; 
many young men and young ladies joined the 
Church, and there were many clear and happy con- 
versions." The meeting continued for more than a 
week, and sixty persons were added to the Church. 
Encouraged by what had been accomplished, the 
members of the Church proposed to hold a camp- 
meeting immediately after Conference, and requested 
Mr. Deering and the other brethren to be present. 
The session of the Annual Conference adjourned on 
Friday, the 23d of September, and on Saturday Mr. 
Deering was on the camp-ground, about four miles 
from Nicholasville. A large number of board tents 
had been erected, each provided with a stove, in 
case the weather should turn cold. The meeting 
was one of great power. Nearly one hundred per- 
sons were converted and joined the Church. The 
entire community was aroused. Under a, single ser- 
mon preached by Mr. Deering, one evening, fully 
one hundred persons came to the altar and pleaded 
for mercy, and more than one-half of them were 
converted within a few hours. 

William M. Crawford and George W. Smiley 
were appointed to this charge, and during the year 



Western Cavaliers. 491 



one hundred and eighty persons became members 
of the Church. 

In the Georgetown Circuit, the second quarterly- 
meeting, which commenced in Georgetown February 
5, was a time of great power. Joseph D. Barnett, 
the faithful pastor, writes: " Twenty-three gave in 
their names as probationers, and we think more than 
that number testified that God hath power on earth 
to forgive sins."* On the 19th of February he 
wrote: " With a full soul, let me say to the friends 
of Zion that our protracted-meeting at Georgetown 
has just closed, and the number that offered for 
membership was seventy-four." f A few days later 
Evan Stevenson reported nine additional members. 
The Athens Circuit, too, was abundantly blessed. 
Drummond Welburn reported forty additions to the 
Church. Later in the year he reported an addition 
of seventy more, and ninety conversions. On the 
Burlington Circuit, there was a revival in almost 
every neighborhood, under the ministry of Fielding 
Bell; while Thomas Demoss and James H. Dennis, 
on the Owenton Circuit, were instrumental in bring- 
ing many to Christ. 

The Louisville District shared largely in the riches 
of grace. On the 9th of March George W. Brush 
writes: " There is now a most powerful revival of 
religion in the three stations in Louisville, Ken- 
tucky." He, however, gives none of the particulars. 
An examination of the General Minutes shows a 
considerable increase in Brook, Fourth, and Eighth 

* Western Christian Advocate, February 24, 1843. f Western 
Christian Advocate, March 16, 1843. 



492 



Western Cavaliers. 



street Churches. Hubbard H. Kavanaugh was sta- 
tioned at Brook-street, George W. Brush at Fourth- 
street, and William Holman at Eighth-street. The 
Clay-street German Charge, under the ministry of 
William Ahrens, was also greatly blessed. 

The Jefferson Circuit was served by Charles B. 
Parsons and Andrew J. McLaughlin. 

Charles B. Parsons was born, in Enfield, Connecti- 
cut, July 23, 1805. At an early period in life he 
chose the profession of the stage, and as an actor, 
before he was thirty years of age, he attained the 
highest reputation. Several influences combined to 
turn his thoughts to the all-important subject of re- 
ligion. Reading religious books, the prayers in his 
behalf, offered by his brother, who was a Presbyte- 
rian minister, and the earnest appeals from the lips 
of John Newland Maffitt, were instrumental in lead- 
ing him to Christ. He professed religion and joined 
the Methodist Episcopal Church in March, 1839. 
Before the period of his probation expired he was 
granted permission by the Presiding Elder to preach 
the gospel, to which high and holy office he believed 
himself to be called. After preaching a few ser- 
mons to admiring thousands, it is to be regretted 
that he withdrew from the Church and returned to 
the stage, to fulfill an engagement he had made pre- 
vious to his admission into the Church. No act of 
the life of this distinguished man produced deeper 
sorrow, in his own heart and in the hearts of his 
friends, than this, and in after years he often re- 
ferred to it with painful emotion. He remained out 
of the Church only a short time, when, with heart- 



Western Cavaliers. 



493 



felt contrition, he returned and asked for an humble 
place with the people of God. His tears and great 
sorrow for the wrong he had committed melted 
every heart, and with rejoicing they received the 
wanderer back. After the expiration of his proba- 
tionary term he was regularly licensed to preach the 
gospel, and in the autumn of 1841 was admitted on 
trial into the Kentucky Conference. 

Before he entered the Conference he preached in 
the several Methodist Churches in Louisville, where 
he had long resided, and throughout the surrounding 
country, and everywhere he proclaimed the tidings 
of a Redeemer's love listening multitudes caught 
with pleasure the burning words which fell from his 
lips. In him were combined all the requisites of the 
true orator — great emotion, passion, a correct judg- 
ment of human nature, genius, fancy, imagination, 
gesture, attitude, intonation, and countenance, with 
a commanding presence, all united in blended 
strength to accomplish the mighty purpose which 
moved his heart. He earnestly spoke the truth of 
God's holy word, relying on the divine arm for help. 
He preached as a dying man to dying men, as in the 
presence of God and the judgment-seat. He fear- 
lessly pronounced the threatenings of the law, probed 
with a bold hand the sinner's heart, and in much 
assurance and with the power of the Holy Ghost 
declared the whole message of God. 

His first appointment was to the Jefferson Circuit, 
as the colleague of Joseph D. Barnett. He entered 
upon his work in the spirit of the Master. Anxious 
crowds waited upon his ministry, sinners were 



494 



We stern Cavaliers. 



awakened, penitents converted, and the Church es- 
tablished. At the close of the year three hundred 
persons had joined the Church under the labors of 
these zealous preachers. In 1842 he was returned 
to the same field. On the 12th of January follow- 
ing he writes from Middletown: "A revival is in 
progress in this village, which promises great good 
to the cause of religion. Fifty-six have been added 
to the Church, many of whom have been happily 
converted."* On the 2d of March he writes from 
Jeffersontown : "The time was when Methodism 
triumphed in this place, but years have fled since 
then, and her palmy clays are almost forgotten. 
Thank God, the standard of the cross is again lifted 
amidst the ruins, and, phenix-like, our beloved 
Methodism has risen, thrice glorious, from her 
parent-ashes! The death of one of the few old 
saints of God, who, faithful to the last, have stood 
like monuments of by-gone days, perpetuating with 
gloomy grandeur the memory of other times, called 
our attention to the place, and we resolved once 
more to sound the battle-cry. Twelve old soldiers, 
the relics of a once large and flourishing Society, ral- 
lied around the standard, and the tight commenced. 
The God of battles was with us; union and com- 
munion was had with other branches of the family 
of Christ, and our meeting terminated with fifty-two 
additions to the Church and the re-collection of 
several who had strayed away and been well-nigh 
lost forever." f The work spread all around the 

* Letter in Western Christian Advocate of February 3, 1843. 
f Western Christian Advocate, March 17, 1843. 



We stern Cavaliers. 



495 



circuit, and hundreds believed and were brought to 
Christ. 

The Shepherdsville Circuit, under the ministry of 
George W. Crumbaugh, was greatly revived, and 
more than sixty persons were added to the Church. 
In the La Grange Circuit, the revival was general. 
The zealous James D. Holding was in charge, with 
Samuel D. Baldwin as his colleague. 

Mr. Baldwin was a young man. He was born, 
in Worthington, Ohio, November 24, 1818. His 
parents were Presbyterians. He had graduated with 
high honor in Woodward College, Cincinnati, stand- 
ing in the first rank in the class of which Hon. 
George H. Pendleton and Hon. George E. Pugh 
were members. While at college he became con- 
cerned on the subject of religion, and was happily 
converted among the Methodists, and united with 
that branch of the Christian Church. The step that 
he had taken was a disappointment to his parents, 
who had hoped that he would become a minister in 
the Church of which they were members. Many 
efforts were made to persuade him to leave the 
Methodist Church, but they were unavailing. True 
to principle, for conscience' sake he forsook father, 
mother, brothers, and sisters, to serve God in that 
Church through whose instrumentality he was 
brought to Christ, and in which he might be most 
useful and happy. This severance from his family 
was to him a severe trial; but his judgment and 
conscience dictated and sustained him in this course, 
from which he never swerved. In his early life he 
had traveled in the Southern States. He admired 



496 



Western Cavaliers. 



the people and loved the manners and habits of 
Southerners, and hence he sought a place in the 
South. He had just entered the Conference, and 
his first circuit was the La Grange. Popular, gifted, 
eloquent, zealous, and devoted to his work, success 
crowned his labors. 

The preachers on the Newcastle Circuit were Car- 
lisle Babbitt and Samuel L. Robertson. Mr. Babbitt 
had been for several years a useful member of the 
Conference;* but Mr. Robertson had just been ad- 
mitted on trial. He was a young man, and gave 
great promise of usefulness to the Church. He was 
born, in Bath county, Kentucky, February 6, 1818. 
In August, 1833, in Fleming county, Kentucky, he 
became a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. Believing it to be his duty to preach, he 
nevertheless entered the ministry with much hesita- 
tion. After serious thought he decided to meet the 
obligations which confronted him, and on the 4th 
of June, 1842, was licensed to preach by Isaac Col- 
lard. On the Newcastle Circuit he performed the 
duties assigned him with earnestness and zeal, and 
with blessing to the people. At a meeting in Bed- 
ford, held in March, seventy-three persons joined 
the Church. 

The Hardinsburg District enjoyed many refreshing 
seasons, although there was only a small increase 
in the membership. In the Big Spring, Hardins- 
burg, Hawesville, and Owensboro Circuits, there 
was much religious interest. Nathanael H. Lee and 

*See sketch of Carlisle Babbitt, in the "History of Meth- 
odism in Kentucky." 



Western Cavaliers. 497 

George Hancock travel ed on the Owensboro Circuit, 
and under their ministry many were added to the 
Church. On the 27th of March Mr. Lee reports a 
revival in Owensboro, at which fifteen were added 
to the Church. On the 11th of September he re- 
ports revivals at Burk's, in Ohio county, and at 
Pleasant Grove, in Daviess county. In these several 
revivals one hundred and forty persons were added 
to the Church. The Hardinsburg Circuit was served 
by Serai ah S. Deering and Learner B. Davison, true 
and faithful men, who were instrumental in bring- 
ing many to Christ. In other portions of the Dis- 
trict there were seasons of refreshing. 

Seraiah S. Deering was born, in Greenup county, 
Kentucky, April 10, 1816. Under the ministry of 
William P. McKnight he joined the Church, at 
Thomas Lawson's, in the same county, in February, 
1831. He gave his hand to the Church as a seeker 
of religion, and after deep repentance and earnest 
supplication he was happily converted in the follow- 
ing June. He was alone in the woods when the 
great change occurred. The impression was not 
only on his mind that it was his duty to preach the 
gospel, but all who knew him entertained the same 
belief. In the summer of 1834 he was licensed to 
exhort, and in November of the same year to preach. 
In a previous chapter we referred to him as supply- 
ing, under the Presiding Elder, the Taylorsville and 
the Hartford Circuits, and to his zealous and useful 
labors on the Yellow Banks Circuit, after he entered 
the Conference in 1839. In 1840 he was again sent 
to the Hartford Circuit, where he had been em- 



498 



We stern Cavaliers. 



inently successful two years before. His appoint- 
ment in 1841 was to the Hardinsburg Circuit, to 
which he was returned in 1842. 

The membership in the Shelbyville District pre- 
sents but little change from that of the previous 
year. In the Shelby Circuit, which, under the min- 
istry of Xapoleon B. Lewis, had enjoyed such great 
prosperity, the religious interest had not abated. 
Mr. Lewis was returned to the field in which he had 
already- won so many trophies to the Redeemer. 

Napoleon B. Lewis was born, in Russellville, Ken- 
tucky, September 25, 1809. His ancestors, on his 
father's side, were Virginians. They came to Ken- 
tucky at an early day, and settled in that beautiful 
plain which lies between the hills of Green River 
and the Cumberland. There two generations of 
them lie buried. Among the earliest Methodists in 
Logan county, Kentucky, was his maternal grand- 
mother. For many years her house was not only 
the home of the weary itinerant, but the chapel for 
the neighborhood. At one time an effort was made 
to remove the Society, thinking it could not be 
longer maintained; but, in deference to Mrs. Stem- 
mons,* the grandmother of Mr. Lewis, it was con- 

*Mrs. Stemmons was richly rewarded for her devotion to 
the Church. Alexander IT. Stemmons and Jacob M. Stem- 
mons, her two sons, became Methodist preachers. One of her 
daughters married Herrington Stevens, a Methodist itinerant 
preacher. Napoleon B. Lewis was her grandson, and John W. 
Rhodes, a useful and popular preacher, married one of her 
granddaughters. James A. Lewis and John W. Lewis? at 
present members of the Louisville Conference, are her great- 
grandsons. 



Western Cavaliers. 



499 



tihued at her house, and resulted in a strong Society, 
now removed to Keysburg. The father of Napo- 
leon B. Lewis died, leaving his son, quite young, to 
the care of one of the best of mothers — wise, pru- 
dent, and self-reliant. She was afterward married 
to Robert Davis, a Presbyterian preacher, a godly 
man, who aided her in molding the character of 
her children, and in training them for heaven. 

Mr. Lewis received the rudiments of a good Eng- 
lish education under the instruction of his step- 
father, with whom he commenced the study of the 
languages, but was prevented by the death of Mr. 
Davis from realizing any farther benefit. The care 
of the family devolved on him, and as a true and 
affectionate son and brother he cheerfully fulfilled 
the responsible trust. 

In May, 1830, he joined the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, as a seeker of religion, and a week later 
realized the pardoning love of Christ, in a class- 
meeting at Keysburg, Kentucky. It had been an 
abiding impression of his childhood that he would 
become a preacher. When but a boy he crawled 
beneath the pulpit of the old log church, and prayed 
the Lord that " if he did make Mm a preacher, to make 
him a good one." Immediately after his conversion 
he erected the altar for family worship, from which, 
morning and evening, his prayers went up to God. 

In the autumn of 1832 he was licensed to preach 
by Isaac Collard, and the following year was em- 
ployed by him on the Livingston Circuit. At the 
Conference of 1834 he was admitted on trial into 
the Kentucky Conference, and was appointed to the 



500 



Western Cavaliers. 



Cumberland Mission. In 1835 his field of labor was 
the Barboursville Mission. In 1836 he was sent to 
the Little Sandy Circuit, and in 1837 to Danville. 
In 1838 he was appointed to the Greenville Circuit, 
where he remained two years. From the Green- 
ville Circuit we follow him to the Hodgenville, and 
thence to the Shelby Circuit, where we still find 
him in 1842. prosecuting his work with fidelity and 
zeal. 

There were but few preachers in Kentucky whom 
we knew more intimately than we did Napoleon B. 
Lewis. He was an extraordinary man. From the 
time he entered the ministry he stood abreast with 
the ablest preachers in the State, and exerted an in- 
fluence for good that but few young men could 
claim. God had called him to preach the unsearch- 
able riches of Christ, and, whether the path of duty 
lay amid mountain fastnesses or in fertile valleys, he 
was ever found at his post. In the cabins of the 
humble poor and in the frescoed church alike he 
proclaimed " liberty to the captive and the opening 
of the prison-doors to those who are bound." His 
talents were of a high order. As a preacher he had 
but few equals, whether he discussed the cardinal 
doctrines of Christianity, or unfolded its practical 
duties, or dwelt on its blessed experience. In ex- 
hortation he was overpowering. We have listened 
to the appeals he made to sinners, when the tallest 
sons of vice fell before the power of truth as bends 
the forest before the rasrinff storm. We have heard 
him when, rising with his theme, he carried his vast 
audiences with him to the loftiest heights, whence 



Western Cavaliers. 



501 



they might contemplate the scenes of felicity and of 
grandeur on which the disembodied spirit shall enter 
when it has dropped this earthly tabernacle in the 
dust. Influenced by a single motive — to do good 
and to save the souls of men — we are not surprised 
that thousands were brought to God through his 
instrumentality. Everywhere he preached crowded 
audiences waited on his ministry, and stars were 
gathered to deck the crown he wears to-day. On 
the Shelby Circuit he was eminently useful. Hun- 
dreds were brought into the Church and into the 
" peace of God, which passeth all understanding," 
through his labor of love; and at the close of his 
pastorate in that charge the Church blessed him for 
the good he had, under God, accomplished. 

In the Taylorsville Circuit, William Atherton and 
Zachariah M. Taylor had prosperous times. In the 
Salt River Circuit, Richard I. Dungan and Garret 
Davis witnessed many conversions; while Leroy C. 
Danley and Allen McLaughlin had some success on 
the Hodgenville Circuit. In the Lebanon Circuit, 
William R. Price and John W. Fields labored with 
marked zeal and success; while Moses Levi, on the 
Lawrenceburg Circuit, successfully pointed sinners 
to the Shiloh. 

In the Ilarrodsburg District there were also sea- 
sons of rejoicing. Before the first of April fifty 
persons had joined the Church, under the ministry 
of Moses M. Henkle. 

In the Somerset Circuit, as early as the 4th of 
January, Ransom Lancaster writes: "On the 13th 
of December I commenced a meeting in Somerset, 



502 



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which continued until the 27th. The result was 
thirty-two accessions, making in all, since I came 
here, sixty-six additions to the Church."* On the 
18th of February a meeting was commenced at Car- 
son's Meeting-house, which resulted in twenty-one 
conversions and twenty-seven accessions. f On the 
28th of May Mr. Lancaster writes again: "Up to 
this time I have received one hundred and eighteen, 
as probationers, into the Church." J 

Ransom Lancaster was a young man of extraor- 
dinary zeal and uncompromising devotion to the 
Church. He was born, in Boonsboro, Madison 
county, Kentucky, April 15, 1818. He was con- 
verted at Pleasant Grove Camp-ground, in Daviess 
county, Kentucky, in August, 1839, and joined the 
Church at the same time. 

In August, 1840, he was licensed to preach by Ben- 
jamin T. Crouch. For more than a year he served 
the Church as a local preacher, and in the autumn 
of 1841 he was admitted on trial into the Kentucky 
Conference. His first appointment was to the Bar- 
boursville Circuit, where his labors were greatly 
blessed. In 1842 we find him on the Somerset Cir- 
cuit, prosecuting his work with fidelity and success. 

In the Richmond Station, Gilby Kelly, the gifted 
and popular pastor, reports twenty conversions and 
thirty-eight additions to the Church, at the second 
quarterly -meeting, at which he was assisted by 
Drummond Welburn; while on the Madison Cir- 

* Western Christian Advocate, J anuary 20, 1843. f Letter from 
Stephen K. Vaught, in Western Christian Advocate, March 10, 
1843. \Western Christian Advocate, June 9, 1843. 



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503 



cuit, the revival which commenced the previous year 
under the ministry of Edwin Roberts and Robinson 
E. Sidebottom was continued under the labors of 
the latter during all the present year. 

The Conference had in it no man truer to the in- 
terests of the Church than Robinson E. Sidebottom. 
He was born, in Green county, Kentucky, April 12, 
1809. He was converted in November or Decem- 
ber, 1831, and in July, 1833, was received into the 
Methodist Episcopal Church by Hooper Crews, and 
was by him licensed to exhort. Early in the spring 
of 1834 he was employed to travel on the Living- 
ston Circuit, in the place of Joseph D. Barnett, who 
had been removed to the Henderson Circuit. He 
preached until the fourth quarterly-meeting on the 
charge to which he was appointed, having license 
only to exhort. At this quarterly-meeting he was 
licensed to preach, and recommended to the Ken- 
tucky Conference for admission on trial. 

In 183-1 he was received into the Conference, and 
appointed to the Hinckstone Circuit, with Josiah 
Whitaker. His second appointment was to the 
Danville Circuit, with Gilby Kelly. Although the 
year had nearly passed away without any extraor- 
dinary outpouring of the Holy Spirit, yet toward its 
close, at the Durham Camp-ground, more than one 
hundred persons were happily converted to God. 
John Xewland Maffitt and George McXelly were at 
the meeting, and rendered much service. At the 
following Conference he was returned to the same 
charge, with Milton Jamieson, who failed to reach 
the work, and the vacancy was supplied by Richard 



504 



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I. Dungan. It was during this year that union 
meetings were held in that charge by the preachers 
of the different denominations, which resulted in 
the conversion of hundreds. In 1837 he was sent to 
the Burksville Circuit, where, although he labored 
with constancy and devotion, the total amount he 
received, for the support of himself, wife, and two 
children, was thirty-seven dollars and thirty-seven 
and one-half cents. His next field of labor was the 
Hodgenville Circuit, to which he was returned the 
following year, where his ministry was prosperous 
and successful. In 1840 we again meet with him on 
the Danville Circuit, after an absence of three years. 
In this charge extraordinary revivals crowned his 
labors, and many were brought to Christ. At Beech 
Grove and Joseph's Chapel sinners were awakened 
and penitents converted to God. On the Madison 
Circuit, in 1841 and in 1842, revivals blessed the 
labors of this good man wherever he delivered the 
message of life and salvation, and many were the 
seals to his ministry. 

On the Stanford Circuit, Clinton Kelly persuaded 
many to be reconciled to God — the pleasure of the 
Lord prospered in his hands: while on the Lancas- 
ter Circuit, Thomas E. Malone was instrumental in 
doing much good. 

The preacher on the Salvisa Circuit was Elkanah 
Johnson, one of the most remarkable men in the 
Conference. He was born, in Shelby county, Ken- 
tucky, May 5, 1811. In 1821, near Madison, In- 
diana, he joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
but was not converted until 1826. In 1838 he was 



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505 



licensed to preach by Benjamin T. Crouch, and en- 
tered the Kentucky Conference. His first appoint- 
ment was to the Owenton Circuit. In 1839 he was 
sent to the Taylorsville Circuit, and in 1840 to the 
Shelby Circuit. At the Conference of 1841 he was 
appointed to the Newcastle Circuit, and in 1842 we 
find him on the Salvisa Circuit. In all these fields 
God blessed the ministry of this true man. His 
manner of preaching was peculiar. He imitated 
no one. His sermons were distinguished for their 
soundness, force, and power. He attracted attention 
wherever he ministered, and accomplished good. 

In the Bowling Green District, there was an in- 
teresting revival of religion in the Bowling Green 
Station, under the ministry of Eli B. Crain. On 
the Scottsville Circuit, previous to the 15th of June, 
Munford Pelly reported more than one hundred ad- 
ditions to the Church. In the Glasgow Circuit, the 
ever-faithful Joel Peak witnessed seasons of great 
prosperity; while in the Burksville Circuit, Josiah 
Godbey was greatly encouraged by the success which 
crowned his labors. Albert Kelly, in the Wayne 
Circuit, and John C. C. Thompson, in the Columbia 
Circuit, w T ere instrumental in doing much good. 

In no District in the Conference were the displays 
of divine power more apparent than in the Hopkins- 
ville. Edward Stevenson was still the leader — an 
indefatigable and zealous preacher of the gospel. 
The Conference adjourned on the 23d of September, 
On the 5th day of October a camp-meeting com- 
menced at Ash Spring, in the Logan Circuit, to 
which Albert H. Bedford was reappointed. It con- 
22 



506 



Western Cavaliers. 



tinued until the 17th day of the month. At this 
meeting two hundred and eighty-one persons were 
happily converted, and one hundred and eighty- 
three joined the Methodist Church. The preachers 
who assisted the pastor were Robert Fisk, William 
Knowles, John F. South, and Mr. Brooks, a local 
preacher from Tennessee. Besides these, Edward 
Stevenson was present nearly all the time. This 
meeting was one of great power. In three days one 
hundred and five "persons passed from death unto 
life." At the close about one hundred adults were 
baptized by pouring. The revival spread through- 
out the circuit. On the 27th of January the pastor 
wrote: "The Lord is still reviving his work in this 
circuit. Since I last wrote, ninety have been added 
to the Church, making in all, since Conference, two 
hundred and seventy-three." * On the 4th of July 
he wrote again: "Three hundred and thirty-two 
persons have been added to the Church, and about 
the same number converted to God;"f and before 
the year closed more than four hundred persons had 
become members of the Church. 

At Pleasant Grove — a Society which had been re- 
duced to a few members, and where the debate on 
baptism, mentioned in the previous chapter, had oc- 
curred a few months before — the religious influence 
was overwhelming; nearly one hundred persons 
embraced religion and entered the Church. At 
Adairsville, one of the early battle-grounds for 
Methodism in Kentucky, the Society had been en- 

* Western Christian Advocate, February 10, 1843. f Western 
Christian Advocate, July 14 ? 1843, 



Westeen Cavaliers. 



507 



tirely blotted out; but a new organization, with 
forty-two members, again entered the same field. 
At Keysburg, Pleasant Run, Red Oak Grove, and 
Dry Fork, God blessed the labors of his servants, 
and souls were gathered into the Church. In Rus- 
sellville, J ohn F. South met with considerable suc- 
cess; and at Elkton, John B. Perry was instrumental 
in " turning many to righteousness." In the Hop- 
kinsville Circuit, the plain, unostentatious Thomas 
Bottomley proclaimed the tidings of salvation to 
the hundreds who waited upon his ministry, and 
more than two hundred souls passed "into the lib- 
erty of the children of God." In the La Fayette 
Circuit, which included the delightful village of 
Cadiz, experimental religion triumphed over a for- 
mal Christianity, and Campbellism, mortified at its 
own defeats, for awhile stood aghast, and then re- 
tired from uhe struggle. At Smithland, James N". 
Temple was eminently useful; and on the Salem 
Circuit, "William James and William Lasley rejoiced 
over the victories they had won. Robert Fisk, in 
the Princeton Circuit, and George Riach, in the 
Franklin Circuit, enjoyed refreshing seasons, and 
made full proof of their ministry. 

In the Barboursville District, William B. Landrum 
reports revivals in Barboursville, in the Mount 
Pleasant Circuit, in Prestonsburg, in Louisa, and in 
almost every part of the District. 

In Jackson's Purchase, the Hickman Circuit was 
divided, forming the Hickman and the Mayfield 
Circuits. While the several charges in this portion 
of Kentucky were blessed with interesting meetings 



508 



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during the year, there was a decrease of one hundred 
and twenty in the white and forty-seven in the col- 
ored membership. 

The total increase in the State for this year was 

two thousand seven hundred and ninety -one white and 
one thousand three hundred and sixty colored members. 



Western Cavaliers. 



509 



CHAPTER XII. 

FKOM THE SESSION OF THE KENTUCKY CONFERENCE OF 
1843 TO THE CONFERENCE OF 1844. 

Kings shall fall down before him, 

And gold and incense bring; 
All nations shall adore him, 

His praise all people sing : 
For he shall have dominion 

O'er river, sea, and shore, 
Far as the eagle's pinion 

Or dove's light wing can soar. 

THE Kentucky Annual Conference of 1843 met 
in the city of Louisville, on the 13th of Sep- 
tember. Bishop Morris presided, and Thomas N". 
Ealston and William M. Crawford were elected 
Secretaries. 

The appointment of the usual committees and the 
examination of the character of the preachers occu- 
pied the principal portion of the first three days of 
the session. 

Several preachers of distinction, from other Con- 
ferences, were present — among them, Charles Elliott, 
D.D., editor of the Western Christian Advocate; Leon- 
idas L. Hamline, editor of the Ladies' Repository; 
Leroy Swormstedt, Book Agent at Cincinnati; E. 



510 



Western Cavaliers. 



W. Sehon, Agent for the American Bible Society; 
Messrs. Wood, Beck, Robinson, Daily, and Hays, of 
the Indiana Conference; Charles K. Marshall, of the 
Mississippi Conference; and Mr. Doring, of the 
Pittsburgh Conference. 

On Friday morning Dr. Sehon addressed the Con- 
ference in behalf of the American Bible Society, 
and Dr. Elliott in behalf of the Western Christian 
Advocate. 

At the close of Dr. Elliott's address, the following 
resolution was offered by Joseph S. Tomlinson and 
Thomas 1ST. Ralston, and adopted: 

"Resolved, by the Kentucky Annual Conference, That 
we have great confidence in the management of the 
Western branch of the Methodist Book Concern, 
and that we consider it of vast importance to the 
interests of our Church; and that we will use in- 
creased exertions to sustain and promote the useful- 
ness of that institution, by & prompt payment of our 
liabilities to it, and by the circulation of the books 
and periodicals which from time to time emanate 
from that establishment." 

A resolution of greater importance could scarcely 
have been submitted to an Annual Conference. The 
Western Book Concern had been established by the 
Church, that the demands of the West might be 
fully supplied. The Conferences whose benefit it 
was intended to subserve owed their undivided sup- 
port toward its advancement and success. Not only 
was it their duty to circulate the books that ema- 
nated from it, but to place the Advocate in every 
family they served. The influence of a religious 



Western Cavaliers. 



511 



paper on the intelligence and piety of a household 
cannot be easily estimated. Another feature in the 
resolution looked to the payment of the debts due 
the Concern. With a laxity that can hardly be 
excused, they had filled orders for books without 
inquiring into the ability of persons to meet their 
obligations. Some of the preachers had been remiss 
in reference to their book accounts, and hence the 
suggestion of promptness in the resolution. It was 
at this Conference that a young preacher, who owed 
a large account to the Book Concern, offered his 
note at one year from date, which the Agent re- 
fused, and said: "My young brother, you will pay me 
now, or I will report you to the Conference as a delin- 
quent!" The young man turned away, mortified, 
but borrowed the money and settled his account. 
To-day he remembers Mr. Swormstedt with feelings 
of gratitude for having taught him the virtue of 
promptness. Several others failed to pay what they 
owed* and the Agent submitted their names, with 
the amounts of their indebtedness, to the Confer- 
ence, for such action as might be deemed proper. 
No preacher, and especially a young man, should 
allow himself to incur a debt to the amount of a 
dollar; but if he does, he should feel that his honor 
is imperiled if he fails to settle it at the close of the 
Conference-year. 

A resolution from the New York Conference, 
memorializing the General Conference to restore 
Mr. Wesley's original rule on spirituous liquors, was 
concurred in, seventy-nine voting in the affirmative 
and one in the negative; also, a resolution from the 



512 



Western Cavaliers. 



same Conference, to request the General Conference 
to suspend the Restrictive Rules so far as to make the 
rule on slavery read as follows: "The buying or 
selling men, women, or children, with an intention 
to enslave them," was concurred in. 

A resolution from the Xew Jersej 7 Conference was 
submitted, recommending that the Discipline be so 
changed, on the subject of slavery, as to read: " The 
buying or selling of men, women, or children, with 
an intention to enslave them, or the holding them as 
slaves, in any State, Territory, or District, w T here the 
laws of such State, Territory, or District will admit 
of emancipation, and permit the liberated slave to 
enjoy freedom." The Conference unanimously voted 
non-concurrence. 

Henry B. Bascom, William Gunn, Hubbard H. 
Kavanaugh, Edward Stevenson, Benjamin T. Crouch, 
and George W. Brush, were elected Delegates to the 
General Conference, and John Christian Harrison 
and George W. Taylor reserves. 

A resolution w r as adopted, requesting Henry B. 
Bascom to collect materials for the history of the 
rise and progress of Methodism in Kentucky, and 
to write that history as soon as convenient. 

It is to be regretted that Dr. Bascom did not per- 
form this labor of love. He had entered the minis- 
try in the heroic age of the Church, and was familiar 
with the men and had mingled with many of the 
scenes that would have invested such a work with 
thrilling interest. So far, how r ever, as we are ad- 
vised, no steps were taken in this direction by the 
distinguished preacher. 



Western Cavaliers. 



513 



The following persons were admitted on trial: 
John Barth, Henry Coch, Larkin F. Price, John S. 
McGee, John X. Wright, James Penn, Edmund B. 
Buckner, Timothy C. Frogge, Warren M. Pitts, Geo. 
B. Poage, William J. Chenowith, Bartlett A. Ba- 
sham, William Butt, Edward A. Martin, Alexander 
McCown, Milton GL Baker, Samuel P. Chandler, 
Stephen K. Yaught, Thomas J. Moore, Orson Long, 
George W. Burriss, Samuel D. Roberts, and William 
Neikirk. 

James I. George and Alanson C. Dewitt located. 

Thomas Hall, Thomas 2s". Ralston, Andrew J. Mc- 
Laughlin, Peter Taylor, George S. Savage, James 
Ward, John Tevis, ZadokB. Thaxton, Stephen Har- 
ber, Thomas Waring, Abram Long, and John Vance, 
were placed on the list of the superannuated. 

For the first time, the name of Thomas Ralston 
appears among the superannuated preachers. He 
was born, in Bourbon county, Kentucky, March 21, 
1806. In November, 1826, he professed religion, 
and in May, 1827, at Greer's Creek Church, in 
Woodford county, Kentucky, he was received into 
the Church by William Adams, and by the same 
preacher was licensed to preach, the following Au- 
gust, at a District Conference, in Lexington, Ken- 
tucky. In 1827 Mr. Ralston was admitted on trial 
into the Kentucky Conference, and was appointed 
to the Mo ant Sterling Circuit, with Milton Jamieson 
in charge. In 1828 he was appointed to the Dan- 
ville Circuit, with William Atherton. In 1829 he 
located, in consequence of feeble health, after having 
been admitted into full connection. He remained 



514 



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local four years, a portion of the time sustaining the 
relation of principal to the Bethel Academy, in 
JSTicholasville, yet preaching as often as his health 
would permit. 

In the meantime he removed to Illinois, where, in 
1833, he reentered the itinerant ranks in the Illinois 
Conference, and was appointed to the Rushville Cir- 
cuit, having for his colleague the young, eloquent, 
and sainted Peter Bowen. In the spring of 1834 
Rushville was detached from the circuit, and formed 
into a station, to which Mr. Ralston was returned 
in the autumn. In 1835 he was transferred to the 
Kentucky Conference, and appointed to the Ver- 
sailles Circuit, having for his colleague George S. 
Savage. The next year we find him in Frankfort; 
thence we follow him to Maysville, where he re- 
mained two years. From Maysville he was sent to 
the city of Louisville, and stationed at Fourth-street, 
the oldest, and at that time the largest, church in the 
city. In 1840 he was appointed Agent for Augusta 
College, and in 1841 his field of labor was the Shel- 
byville Station, to which he was returned in 1842. 
In 1843 he was placed on the list of the superannu- 
ated, but took charge of the Lexington Female 
High-school. 

From the time that Thomas N. Ralston entered 
the itinerant ranks he gave promise of great useful- 
ness to the Church. Soundly converted and di- 
vinely called to the work of the ministry, he entered 
upon the discharge of his high and holy office with 
commendable zeal, and prosecuted its duties with 
energy and success. Endowed with an intellect of 



Western Cavaliers. 



515 



a high order, well improved by a liberal education 
and close study, as a preacher he attracted attention, 
while in the performance of his pastoral work he 
greatly endeared himself to the people he served. 

In the Mount Sterling Circuit, where he won his 
earliest trophies, revivals, like a flaming fire, spread 
over the country, and more than six hundred per- 
sons were added to the Church. It is true, the 
zealous Milton J amieson was in charge, and John 
Ray, Henry McDaniel, John Craig, William C. 
Stribling, John Sinclair, and Israel Lewis, in the 
ministry, and in the laity Caleb Caps, Isaac Redman, 
and Frank Owen, contributed their influence to the 
advancement and progress of the kingdom of the 
Redeemer; yet under the ministry of the young 
itinerant hundreds were brought to Christ. It was 
on this circuit, and during this year, that the good 
Joseph Sewell, one of the most useful local preachers 
in Kentucky, was licensed to preach. He had just 
entered the Church, and was impressed with the 
conviction that he ought to persuade sinners to be 
reconciled to God. Without education, he felt un- 
willing to enter on a work so responsible, until his 
agony became so intense that it was almost intolera- 
ble. Invited by Mr. Ralston, he accompanied him 
around the circuit. His exhortations were over- 
powering. Congregations were melted into tender- 
ness under his warm appeals and earnest prayers. 

On the Danville Circuit, the times were prosper- 
ous. At a camp-meeting near Perry ville many were 
brought to Christ. William Holman was stationed 
in Danville and Harrodsburg, and the gifted Henry 



516 



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S. Duke in Lancaster and Stanford, from whom lie 
received valuable aid. The zealous Dr. Fleece, of 
Danville — a host in a revival — and the good Benja- 
min Durham and Carlin Padlock, in the country, 
held up his hands while he lifted " o'er the ranks 
the prophet's rod." 

While traveling on the Danville Circuit, on one 
occasion he preached on the possibility of apostasy. 
A lady, who was a member of a sister Church, be- 
came offended at the sermon, and, passing from the 
church in company with another lady at whose 
house the young preacher was stopping, she was so 
excited that, while standing on a log by the side of 
her horse, preparatory to mounting him, just as she 
had repeated in a raised voice the words, " He says 
a Christian may fall and be lost; he preached a 
falsehood, for I know a Christian cannot fall," she 
made a spring for the saddle, but did so w T ith such 
force that she fell to the ground on the opposite side 
of the horse — not hurt, however. " Now," said the 
Methodist lady, "that is to pay you for getting 
angry. I hope you will admit hereafter that a 
Christian may fall." The offended woman after- 
ward became a Methodist, and with great humor 
often related the incident. 

The excessive labors of two years had so impaired 
the health of Mr. Ralston that he was no longer able 
to perform the duties of an itinerant, and at the 
suggestion of brethren sought for rest in a local 
sphere. During the four years in which he was a 
local preacher he preached as often as his feeble 
health would permit, and often beyond his strength. 



Western Cavaliers. 



517 



Entering the itinerant field in Illinois, in 1833, he 
had lost none of the zeal which had characterized 
his early ministry, but with untiring energy con- 
tinued to persuade men to turn to God. In the 
town of Rushville a meeting, which was protracted 
through more than two months, resulted in the con- 
version of one hundred persons. * 

*In Rushville there was residing, during this revival, a very 
reputable citizen — Dr. Cossett, an eminent physician — past- 
middle age, and an avowed skeptic as to Christianity. He had 
been in the habit of indulging for many years in his daily 
drams, but never was known to be too much influenced thereby 
to attend to his professional calls. He had always been a 
regular attendant at church. His little daughter, perhaps 
eight or nine years old, professed conversion. She instantly 
rose from her seat, her countenance shining as did that of 
Stephen, and rushed to the bosom of her father. When the 
invitation for members was given, she came forward, among 
others, to join. As soon as the song closed, the doctor ap- 
proached me, and asked the privilege of speaking. I replied, 
"Certainly," but feared he was desirous to explain his reasons 
for objecting to his daughter joining the Church. But no; I 
was mistaken. He spoke, with a trembling voice, substantially 
as follows : "I have been a skeptic all my life, till now. I know 
but little about the Bible. My little daughter, since she has 
been attending your Sunday-school, has taught me more about 
it than I ever knew before. I am now convinced that your 
religion is a reality. I know that my daughter is no hypocrite. 
I am resolved to change my life. I know not how to pray as 
these good brethren can pray. I ask you all to pray for me, 
and if you can receive such an old wretched sinner I wish to 
join the Church with my little daughter." The house was 
electrified; saint and sinner alike wept. He was admitted, 
and welcomed with universal acclamation. In about a month 
afterward he was taken severely ill. His physicians advised 
him to take some wine, brandy, or something to stimulate 



518 



Wester n Cavaliers. 



On his return to Kentucky success still crowned 
his labors. On the Versailles Circuit he enjoyed a 
year of prosperity, in Frankfort he had seals to his 
ministry, and in Maysville many were converted and 
added to the Church. 

He was appointed to Louisville in 1839, imme- 
diately after the most extraordinary revival that had 
ever occurred in that city. John Xewland Maffitt 
had been eminently successful. A vast amount of 
work had necessarily to be performed in taking care 
of those who had entered the communion of the 
Church, and most faithfully did Mr. Ralston address 
himself to the task. 

As Agent for Augusta College he traveled ex- 
tensively, and labored faithfully to promote the in- 
terest confided to his care. 

In Shelbyville. a gracious revival blessed the 
Church. Worn down by excessive labor, he yields 
to his wasting strength, and asks at the hands of 
his brethren a superannuated relation. 

Richard Corwine, John Denham, and Elihu Green, 
had died. The two former were veterans/ 1 '' the latter 
was in the morning of life. 

Elihu Green was born, in Madison county, Ken- 
tucky, July 28, 1814. He was brought up under the 



him. He replied: "Xo. I promised God when I joined the 
Church never to touch or taste it again. I am ready to die. 
but not to break my promise/' He was resolutely firm. A 
few days afterward 1 sat by his bed, and saw him breathe his 
last in peaceful triumph. — Letter from Dr. Ralston to the author. 

* For sketches of Richard Corwine and John Denham, see 
the "History of Methodism in Kentucky." 



Western Cavaliers. 



519 



influence of a deeply pious mother. In 1837 he was 
converted to God, and soon felt inwardly moved to 
the work of the ministry. He was admitted on trial 
into the Kentucky Conference in 1838, and was ap- 
pointed to the Mount Vernon Mission. He spent 
his second year on the West Liberty Mission. He 
subsequently traveled on the Lawrenceburg and 
Wayne Circuits. In these several charges he was 
useful and beloved. His last appointment was to 
the Bowling Green Circuit, in 1842, where, with the 
zeal which had distinguished him in other fields, he 
prosecuted his high and holy calling. He had just 
closed his year's work when arrested by the fever 
wliich terminated his useful life. When asked, in 
reference to his approaching change of worlds, if he 
was afraid to die, he replied, "No," and added: 

"On Jordan's stormy banks I stand, 
And cast a wishful eye 
To Canaan's fair and happy land. 
"Where my possessions lie." 

On the day before his death, arousing from a slum- 
ber, he sang the stanza of the hymn " Eock of Ages,"' 
beginning, 

While I draw this fleeting breath, 
When my eyes shall close in death, 

and then remarked, ^ I am going straight to heaven/' 
Sunday morning, September 10, 1843, his happy 
spirit left the earth in full prospect of that "rest 
that remaineth to the people of God." 

The amount collected for missions was two thousand 
eight hundred and thirty-nine dollars and eighty-one 



520 



Western Cavaliers. 



cents, which was an improvement over the former 
year. 

We meet with John Christian Harrison, again in 
charge of the Augusta District. He was born, in 
Mecklenburg county, North Carolina, October 1, 
1809. He was the second son of Samuel Harrison, 
at that time and for many years after a member of 
the South Carolina Conference.* His mother, whose 
maiden name was Ann Rosser, was among the first 
fruits of Methodism in Roanoke county, Virginia. 
When John Christian Harrison was in his tenth year 
his excellent father, then in feeble health, located. 
The great West presenting an inviting field for emi- 
gration, in February, 1819, he left South Carolina, 
and set out in a small wagon, with his wife and 
children, to cross the mountains. The suffering and 
exposure of that journey made a deep impression on 
all the family, especially on John, the youngest child. 
The winter was an open, rainy one, with great varia- 
bleness of the weather. The newly-opened territory 
of Indiana was the intended point of their destina- 
tion. Reaching Franklin county, Kentucky, on the 
6th of March, the jaded and worn-out condition of 
the horses rendered it impossible to prosecute their 
journey, and, after resting a few days, Mr. Harrison 
leased a farm in Mercer county. A short time after- 
ward he purchased a farm in the same county, on 
which he passed the remainder of his life. 

Brought up in the nurture and admonition of the 
Lord, and deeply concerned on the subject of re- 

*For a sketch of Samuel Harrison, see the "History of 
Methodism in Kentucky." 



Wester n Cavaliers. 



521 



ligion, John joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
August 29. 1827, at a camp-meeting held at Rock- 
bridge. Shelby county. Kentucky. On thtsame day 
he was happily converted to God. Soon after his 
conversion he believed it to be his duty to preach the 
gospel, but shrank from the responsibility of the 
work, fearing that he was not suitably qualified to 
undertake it. 

His refusal to enter the ministry cost him his re- 
ligious comfort and many months of perplexity and 
doubt. Consenting at last to yield to the convictions 
of his heart, his " peace 93 again " flowed like a river," 
and all was happiness, and joy. and love. In Au- 
gust, 1828, he became the leader of a class, and 
commenced in earnest to exhort his classmates and 
others "to make their calling and election sure.' 5 
September 7. 1829. he was licensed to exhort, and 
on the 18th of September. 1830. George W. Taylor 
licensed him to preach the gospel. 

At the session of the Kentucky Conference, held 
in Danville the following October, he was admitted 
on trial, and appointed to the Mount Vernon Circuit, 
as the colleague of Thomas Wallace. The first 
fruits of his labors in the itinerant ministry were 
gathered at a meeting held near Mount Vernon, 
November 13 and 14, at which one or two persons 
professed religion and three joined the Church. 

The Mount Vernon Circuit at this time embraced 
Rockcastle and Laurel counties, the larger portion 
of Clay, and extended into Pulaski and Lincoln. 
The country was mountainous and sparsely settled, 
with twenty-two regular appointments to be filled 



522 



Western Cavaliers. 



every four weeks, and occasional preaching at inter- 
vals. The winter was excessively cold, and the 
travel oftentimes attended with difficulties almost 
insuperable; yet, nothing daunted, this faithful 
preacher of the gospel met his appointments with 
remarkable promptness, carrying the tidings of a 
Redeemer's love to the cabins of the poor. In Jan- 
uary Thomas Wallace, the preacher in charge, was 
compelled by feebleness of health to retire from the 
work, leaving the responsibility of its management 
with his young and inexperienced colleague. We 
have his journal before us, and as we follow him 
from place to place familiar names often occur, and 
we recount the difficulties through which we passed 
when a few years later, a beardless boy, we bore 
aloft the banner of the cross in much of the same 
territory. Notwithstanding the obstacles that im- 
peded Mr. Harrison, he never faltered. His visit to 
his parents during the year is recorded with filial 
tenderness. In summing up his labors at the close 
of the year, he says : " I have traveled two thousand 
miles; have preached about two hundred times; 
have received from the Church for my support about 
fifty dollars; have suffered the extremes of heat and 
cold, of wet and drought; have been sick and have 
enjoyed health; have been on the mountain-top and 
in the valley low. I have read much, reflected much, 
prayed much. I have seen some few sinners turned 
from the error of their ways, but, upon the whole, 
have felt rather discouraged. I have not succeeded 
according to my hopes or wishes, and now feel more 
than ever my insufficiency for this great work/' 



Western 



Cavaliers. 



523 



Mr. Harrison did not attend the Conference that 
year, but remained at home to plant the small grain 
on the farm, while his father attended the Confer- 
ence. On the return of his father he handed him 
the plan of the Mount Vernon Circuit, to which he 
was reappointed, with the remark: "John, the 
Bishop has sent you back to do your work over 
again." The young man's reply was: "Another 
year in the mountains! I presume I shall get used 
to it." 

Considerable prosperity continued to bless his 
labors. His journal contains an account of heart- 
searching examinations, of difficulties, of trials, and 
successes, and everywhere the spirit of entire conse- 
cration to the work to which he had pledged his 
energies and his life. 

At the Conference of 1832 Mr. Harrison, not 
being fully satisfied as to the scriptural authority 
for infant baptism, submitted his difficulties to the 
Committee of Examination for the Undergraduates, 
and, at his own request, was continued another year 
on trial. From this Conference he was sent to the 
Somerset Circuit, with Thomas L. Davis as his col- 
league. This circuit covered a large territory, em- 
bracing the most of Pulaski, Russell, and Casey 
counties, with portions of Adair. Although not so 
mountainous as his former field of labor, yet the 
face of the country was rugged, contrasting well 
with the kind-hearted people he was appointed to 
serve. The year was one of marked prosperity: 
more than one hundred persons were added to the 
Church. He concluded his efficient labors in that 



524 



Western Cavaliers. 



charge at a camp-meeting held at Bethel, in Casey 
county. 

At the Conference of 1833 he was admitted into 
full connection, having, after a thorough investiga- 
tion of the subject, become fully satisfied that infant 
baptism is taught in God's word. He was appointed 
to the Green River Circuit, with Bluford Henry. 
Without the advantages of an ordinary education 
before he entered the ministry, Mr. Harrison had 
during the three years of his itinerant life been a 
close and untiring student. In the charges he had 
filled his facilities for study were by no means favor- 
able, and yet his course of theological reading had 
been extensive, and he was now taking rank with the 
more prominent men of his age. An opportunity 
presented itself at this time for him to commence, 
under a suitable instructor, the study of the Greek 
language, and he promptly availed himself of the 
privilege. Professor Duke, of Green County Sem- 
inary, kindly offered to instruct him. In this de- 
partment of study he made rapid improvement. 

Good meetings during the year, and two successful 
camp-meetings — one at Breeding's, in Adair county, 
and the other at Hilliard's, in Green county — re- 
joiced the hearts of preachers and people. 

At the ensuing Conference he was appointed to 
the Yellow Banks Circuit. After traveling one 
round he was summoned home by the death of his 
father, whose end was peaceful and happy. Unable 
to return to this charge because of its remoteness 
from his widowed mother, a change was effected be- 
tween him and Robert F. Turner, who had been sent 



Western Cavaliers. 



525 



to the Taylorsville Circuit. Mr. Harrison entered 
upon the work in this charge about the middle of 
February, and at the following Conference was reap- 
pointed to the same field, where he was eminently 
useful. At the Conference of 1835 he was elected a 
Reserve Delegate to the General Conference — a high 
compliment to so young a preacher. 

We have seen that during the period of Mr. Har- 
rison's ministry through which we have passed his 
fields of labor were extensive, and his support mea- 
ger; yet he devoted himself to his work with the 
zeal of a true minister of Jesus Christ. Six years 
had elapsed since, with a feeling of insufficiency for 
the duties to which God had called him, he had left 
his father's house to preach the gospel of the grace 
of God. He was then a youth, timid and reserved. 
Step by step he had advanced, not rapidly but surely, 
until at the Conference of 1836 he takes his place 
in the front ranks among his brethren, a place he 
would occupy to the close of his life. 

As the colleague of Benjamin T. Crouch he was 
sent to the city of Louisville, and stationed at the 
Fourth-street Church. From this time he occupied 
a large space in public thought as an able minister 
of the New Testament. He remained in Louisville 
for two years, faithfully and successfully performing 
the duties of an evangelist. A gracious revival 
blessed his ministry, and many turned to the Lord. 
Side by side with George W. Brush, who was sta- 
tioned at Brook-street, he labored, never seeming to 
tire while sinners were coming back to God. Hun- 
dreds were brought to Christ. 



526 



We stern Cavaliers. 



From Louisville we follow him to Lexington, 
where he witnessed some prosperity. At the close 
of this year he was married to Miss Virginia J. Coke, 
daughter of Thomas Coke, of Anderson, one of the 
best women in the Church, and a member of one of 
the best Methodist families in Kentucky. His next 
appointment was to Russellville, where he was still 
useful. In 1840 he was sent to Frankfort, the capital 
of the State. A few months after he entered upon 
his work in Frankfort his aged and pious mother 
was called to heaven. On the 23d of December she 
exchanged the sorrows of the present life for a 
crown that w T ill never fade away. In 1841 he was 
again sent to Louisville, and stationed at Brook- 
street, where he had a pleasant and successful year. 
At the Conference of 1842 he was appointed to the 
Augusta District, and became the gallant and faith- 
ful leader in that extensive field. In 1843 he sus- 
tained to us the responsibe relation of Presiding 
Elder, in charge of the same District to which he 
was appointed in 1842; and here w^e had every op- 
portunity to know him well. Possessing fine execu- 
tive powers, he filled the office with an ability that 
claimed the respect of all who knew him. With 
preaching-talents of a high order, he occupied a 
commanding eminence with the preachers and the 
people. Faithful in the discharge of the duties as- 
signed him, and devoted to the Church, he enjoyed 
the confidence of all who knew him. Impartial in 
the administration of the affairs of the Church, he 
defied the criticism and challenged the admiration 
of all Such was John Christian Harrison in 1843. 



Western Cavaliers. 



527 



As the Presiding Elder on the Augusta District, he 
discharged every duty with fidelity, and by his abil- 
ity in the pulpit, his spotless integrity, his earnest 
devotion, contributed to the advancement of the 
kingdom of the Redeemer. 

This year we find the eloquent and zealous Napo- 
leon B. Lewis in Maysville. Although the General 
Minutes show a small decrease in both the white and 
colored membership, yet his ministry was blessed 
with an interesting revival of religion. During a 
meeting held in the winter the altar of his Church 
w^as crowded with penitent sinners, inquiring for the 
way of life and salvation. 

Albert H. Bedford was placed in charge of the 
Minerva Circuit. His colleague was George B. 
Poage. a young man just admitted on trial. 

Mr. Poage was born January 18, 1823, in Greenup 
county (now Boyd), Kentucky, one mile above where 
the town of Ashland now stands. His family was 
one of the most influential in that part of the State, 
and both his father and mother were pious members 
of the Presbyterian Church. Under the ministry of 
Jedidiah Foster he joined the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, in the town of Louisa, February 16, 1841, 
and was happily converted to God on the 25th of 
the next month. In December, 1842, he was licensed 
to preach by William B. Landrum, and was ad- 
mitted on trial into the Kentucky Conference in 
1843. 

Entering upon the work of the ministry in the 
Minerva Circuit before he had reached his majority, 
with but a brief experience in the Church, we were 



528 



Western Cavaliers. 



surprised to find him so well prepared to perform 
the arduous duties of an itinerant. He filled his 
appointments for preaching, conducted prayer-meet- 
ings, met the classes, and visited among the people, 
as though he had been in the harness for several 
years. Not only beloved by the Church, but in the 
affections of many who were not members he soon 
won a warm place, while his fervent piety and burn- 
ing zeal led many to the altars of the Church and to 
Christ. 

The first meeting of special interest was com- 
menced at Mount Zion on Christmas-day. For sev- 
eral days and nights the gospel preached had no 
apparent effect on the multitudes assembled at the 
place of worship. The Church entered into solemn 
covenant to pray to God to revive his work, and not 
to cease in their efforts until their prayers were an- 
swered. It was midnight, and the altar was crowded 
with penitents; but no voice of thanksgiving and 
praise had gone up to heaven. More than a year 
had passed since the shout of triumph from a soul 
new born to God had been heard within the walls of 
that church, consecrated by so many pleasant memo- 
ries. One o'clock has come and passed, and tears of 
repentance are chasing each other down the cheek 
of sorrow for having sinned against God. A mo- 
ment later, and a note of joy from the altar rings 
through the house. A soul has " passed from death 
unto life/ 5 Again and again the fetters fall, and 
souls regenerated give thanks to God. In a few 
moments six persons found the " pearl of great 
price.' 7 The meeting continued for several days. 



Western Cavaliers. 



529 



Upward of sixty were converted, and seventy per- 
sons were added to the Church. About the middle 
of January a meeting was held at the Stone Church, 
a few miles below Maysville, at which twenty per- 
sons were enrolled as members. 

Campbellism boasted a large organization at this 
time in Brooks ville, an appointment in this circuit. 
A short time before a preacher of that persuasion 
had made an appointment to occupy the court-house 
(the only place for preaching in the town) at the 
same hour at which the preacher in charge of the 
circuit had an appointment. As the time ap- 
proached an intense excitement prevailed in the 
community. The court-house was lighted by the 
Campbellites before sunset, and long before the hour 
for preaching every seat was occupied. A commit- 
tee waited on the Methodist preacher, to inquire 
whether or not he expected to preach, and on re- 
ceiving an affirmative reply, it was proposed that he 
have an interview with the Campbellite preacher, 
which he respectfully declined. The two preachers 
met in the court-house just as the hour arrived for 
the commencement of the service. An introduction 
passed, and then the Methodist preacher opened his 
hymn-book and was about to read his hymn, when 
the following conversation ensued: 

Campbellite. — There is an unfortunate state of 
things here to-night. 

Methodist. — If so, can you inform me who is re- 
sponsible for it? 

Campbellite. — Well, I hardly know. 

Methodist. — Did you not preach in this house this 
23 



530 



Western Cavaliers. 



morning? and when you announced an appointment 
for this evening, were you not publicly informed that 
this hour belongs to the Methodist Church, and that 
I would occupy the house? 

Campbellite. — Yes; but I thought we might ar- 
range the affair peacefully, and I now propose that 
we both preach. 

Methodist. — I cannot hinder you from preaching 
when I shall close my service, nor do I desire to do 
so; but you may feel assured that I regard your in- 
terference with my appointment as a violation of 
Christian courtesy. 

The Methodist preacher occupied the stand, and 
at the close of the service dismissed the congrega- 
tion, upon which they were requested to remain and 
hear another sermon. The text was, "But. speak 
thou the things which become sound doctrine," and 
yet no doctrine whatever was presented and advo- 
cated by the preacher. 

Early in February a meeting was held in Brooks- 
ville, where there had never been a conversion. A 
few persons had removed from other places, and 
formed a small Society. The meeting continued only 
one week. It was a time of great power. Eighty 
persons were converted, and sixty-seven joined the 
Church. 

Among those who professed religion during the 
meeting at Brooksville were several who had passed 
three-score years. An incident occurred at this 
meeting, in which the power of grace was displayed, 
that ought not to be forgotten. Three young per- 
sons — a brother and two sisters — had joined the 



Western Cavaliers. 



531 



Church, and the brother and one of the sisters had 
professed religion. Their only surviving parent was 
their father, who was an avowed Universalist. On 
learning that his children had joined the Methodist 
Church he became enraged, and declared that they 
should never return home. That evening he came 
into Brooksville, and, anxious to know the influence 
that had operated upon his children, attended the 
place of worship. At the close of the sermon, when 
penitents were invited to the altar, his daughter who 
had not been converted was among the first to pre- 
sent herself. As she knelt, her father, exasperated, 
approached the spot, and was bending over her to 
take her from the house, when his son and remain- 
ing daughter, observing him, and believing that he 
had gone forward to ask an interest in the prayers 
of the Church, rushed through the assembly, and, 
falling upon his neck and compelling him to kneel, 
shouted aloud the praises of G-ocl. Unable to extri- 
cate himself, he sent for one of the preachers, to 
whom he stated his dilemma (which had been dis- 
covered by the preacher), informing him that he had 
only come to take his daughter away, and that if he 
would get him out of the unpleasant position he w^as 
in his daughter might remain. The preacher sug- 
gested that he continue upon his knees until a pub- 
lic prayer should be offered, and at its close he could 
arise and leave without any disturbance. Among 
the members of the Church who were present was a 
pious woman named Lydia Hawes, a fine singer and 
remarkably gifted in prayer. The preacher called 
on Lydia llawes to pray. The congregation knelt, 



532 



Western Cavaliers. 



and while on their knees, before praying, she sang, 
alone, 

"Show pity, Lord, Lord, forgive, 
Let a repenting rebel live: 
Are not thy mercies large and free? 
May not a sinner trust in thee?" 

She then offered up an earnest prayer to God, remem- 
bering her old friend and neighbor, and expressing 
gratitude that he had resolved to seek the salvation 
of his soul. The effect was wonderful. The prayer 
closed, and still he knelt. 

" You can leave this place now/' said the preacher. 

"I would rather not. I feel that I am a sinner, 
exposed to almighty wrath, and wish an interest in 
the prayers of God's people," was the reply. 

An hour later the court-house rang with the shout 
of triumph as the father and all his children, in each 
other's embrace, gave glory to God. The scene was 
grand beyond description. 

On the 10th of February the second quarterly- 
meeting commenced in Augusta, and continued over 
two weeks, at which seventy-eight persons were 
added to the Church. At Minerva a meeting was 
held a few weeks later, which resulted in a gracious 
revival of religion. On Sunday evening of the 
meeting a lady was converted in the congregation, 
and, rising from her seat, pressed to the altar, prais- 
ing God. Her husband was standing at the door of 
the church, surrounded by his companions, who, like 
himself, " cared for none of these things." A brief 
conversation with them ensued, and then he started 
down the aisle, determined to take his wife from the 



Western Cavaliers. 



533 



church. The members of the Church, observing 
him, and anticipating his purpose, gathered around 
her to prevent any interference. As he approached 
the altar, his lips white with rage, the preacher in 

charge said: "Mr. H , your wife is converted. 

Stand out of the way, brethren, and let Mr. H 

shake hands with his wife." A benignant smile 
came over his face as he turned toward the preacher, 
and, offering his hand, exclaimed, " I will join your 
Church, too!" He made an excellent member. 

At Dover there were times of refreshing, and be- 
fore the first of April three hundred and fifteen per- 
sons joined the Church, in the circuit, and before the 
year closed more than five hundred cast in their lot 
with the people of G-od. 

While this work of grace was progressing in the 
Minerva Circuit, there was an interesting revival of 
religion in the Grermantown Circuit, which adjoined 
it, under the ministry of Thomas Rankin. The 
Shannon Circuit, too, with Jeclidiah Foster in charge, 
enjoyed times of prosperity. At Nelson Asbury's, 
a meeting commenced on the 23d of August, and 
continued one week, at which fifty persons were 
converted, making a total during the year of one 
hundred and sixty-eight. 

On the Little Sandy Circuit, Samuel Kelly made 
full proof of his ministry. In that rugged field he 
accomplished much good, and was instrumental in 
bringing many to Christ. 

Gilby Kelly succeeded John James on the Cov- 
ington District. This was the first experience of 
Mr. Kelly as a Presiding Elder. He was eminently 



534 



Western Cavaliers. 



qualified for the responsible trust, and performed 
the duties assigned him with signal ability. In the 
city of Covington, to which George C. Light had 
been appointed, a meeting was commenced in Feb- 
ruary, at which twenty -four were added to the 
Church; while at Newport the ministry of Fielding 
Bell was remarkably successful. In the Falmouth 
Circuit, Alexander B. Sollars reported thirty addi- 
tions to the Church at Pis^ah Meeting-house. On 
the Leesburg Circuit, "the pleasure of the Lord" 
prospered in the hands of William C. Atmore. 

The name of Benjamin T. Crouch was still a tower 
of strength in the Lexington District. Since 1840 
he had occupied this field, and as a Presiding Elder 
had but few peers. Under his leadership the Church 
improved in numbers and in influence. The Mount 
Sterling and Athens Circuits — the former in charge 
of Moses Levi, and the latter served by Joshua 
Wilson — and the Frankfort Station, whose pastor 
was Charles B. Parsons, increased in membership, 
while the remainder of the District reports a falling 
off. It is often true that a declension in numbers 
succeeds a large ingathering into the Church. For 
several years almost unparalleled success had fol- 
lowed the labors of faithful men in this section of 
the State, and a small decrease in the membership 
the present year affords no reason for discourage- 
ment. 

The Transylvania University had reached the 
zenith of its glory. The eloquent and gifted Henry 
B. Bascom presided over its fortunes, while Burr II. 
McCown, William H. Anderson, R. T. P. Allen, 



Western Cavaliees. 535 



Josiah L. Kemp, and Thomas H. Lynch, composed 
the Faculty. 

Burr EL McCown was born October 29, 1806, in 
Bardstown, Kentucky, and in 1818 was converted to 
God. In 1824 he joined the Presbyterian Church; 
but, believing the doctrines of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church to accord more fully with the teachings 
of the Bible, in 1826 he joined the Methodist Church, 
under the ministry of Hubbard H. Kavanaugh. He 
was educated at St. Joseph College, in Bardstown, 
and took the highest honors of his class in both the 
Latin and Greek languages. 

From the time he became a member of the Pres- 
byterian Church he had expected to enter the min- 
istry in that denomination. We are not surprised, 
therefore, to find him in the Methodist ministry. 
He was licensed to preach by Marcus Lindsey, in 
1826, and in 1827 was admitted on trial into the 
Kentucky Conference. His first appointment was 
to the Henry Circuit, as the colleague of William 
Atherton. In 1828 he was appointed, with John 
James, to the Jefferson Circuit. At the Confer- 
ence of 1829 he was stationed in Russellville, and in 
1830 in Louisville. In 1831 he was elected to a 
professorship in Augusta College, where he con- 
tinued until 1842, when, with Henry B. Bascom, he 
removed to Lexington, and became a professor in 
Transylvania University. 

During the four years that Mr. McCown was m 
the pastoral work he was useful and beloved. A 
superior preacher, with a sweet and gentle disposi- 
tion, courteous to all, his address popular, and his 



536 



"Western Cavaliers. 



personal appearance commanding, he exerted an in- 
fluence for good that could be claimed by but few 
young men of his day. When we have seen him in 
the pulpit, and heard him preach the unsearchable 
riches of Christ, we have regretted that he was ever 
called from the pastoral work, in which he was so 
happy, and where he was so useful. In the halls of 
learning, however, he lost none of the zeal that had 
distinguished him as a pastor, and none of the love 
that had constrained him to enter the ministry. As 
a teacher he acquired an enviable reputation, and 
contributed much toward the formation of the char- 
acter of hundreds of young men who, throughout 
the West and the South, adorn the learned profes- 
sions. 

William H. Anderson was born, in Wilmington, 
North Carolina, September 17, 1817. In 1827 his 
father removed from Wilmington to Richmond, Vir- 
ginia. While a student at the Wesleyan University, 
in Middletown, Connecticut, in the autumn of 1833, 
he was happily converted to God. In 1835 his father 
removed from Richmond, Virginia, to Louisville, 
Kentucky; and in 1837, at the close of his classical 
course in the Wesleyan University, William H. An- 
derson followed his father to the West. Dedicated 
to God in baptism, in infancy, and brought up in a 
pious home, we are not surprised that in the dewy 
morn of life he gave his heart to God. Fully im- 
pressed with the conviction that he ougdit to preach 
the gospel, in the autumn of 1838 he received license 
from Benjamin T. Crouch, and entered the Confer- 
ence the same autumn. His first appointment was 



Western Cavaliers. 



537 



to the Newcastle Circuit, as the colleague of the 
zealous James D. Holding. His second year he was 
sent to La Grange, with John Beatty. In 1840 he 
w T as appointed to Bowling Green, where we still find 
him in 1841. In 1842 he was appointed to the city 
of Frankfort, as pastor of the Church and as Agent 
for the Transylvania University. Before the close 
of the year he was called away from the pastoral 
work, where his ministry had been so greatly blessed, 
to fill the chair of English Literature in the Tran- 
sylvania University, to whi&h he was officially ap- 
pointed in 1843. 

No young man who had entered the itinerant 
ranks in Kentucky, for many years, had given 
greater promise of usefulness than did William H. 
Anderson. Descended from one of the most prom- 
inent and influential families, his education thorough, 
his piety uniform and consistent, his zeal uncompro- 
mising, his address winning, courteous in his man- 
ners, devoted to the Church, his style in the pulpit 
popular and attractive, and with a voice soft and 
sweet, his entrance into the ministry was looked to 
with more than ordinary interest. On the New- 
castle Circuit, his first field of labor, under his burn- 
ing words and warm appeals many hearts were 
touched, and fell in love with the Saviour. Wher- 
ever he preached crowds hung in breathless silence 
on his lips, and under his instrumentality hundreds 
were brought to Christ. On the La Grange Circuit 
the same success distinguished his labors, and many 
were the seals to his ministry. Before his appoint- 
ment to the Bowling Green Station he had taken 
23* 



538 



Western Cavaliers. 



rank with the first preachers in the State. In that 
charge he continued to be eminently useful in win- 
ning souls to Christ. In the city of Frankfort, as a 
preacher, he occupied a commanding eminence, 
which he continued to maintain amid the classic 
halls of Transylvania. 

In the Shelbyville District, the Lockport, Bloom- 
field, Springfield, and Lawrenceburg Circuits, and 
the Bardstown Station, show a small increase. Wil- 
liam GTunn, the Presiding Elder, one of the truest 
men in the Church, labored with diligence, and the 
noble men associated with him discharged their duty 
with fidelity; yet the increase is small in the charges 
we have mentioned, while in the remainder the de- 
crease is considerable. 

The Louisville District shows a decrease of fifty- 
three in the white membership, and an increase of 
twenty-two in the colored. In several charges, in 
this District, however, there were gracious revivals 
of religion. In the city of Louisville, under the 
ministry of George W. Merritt, upward of one hun- 
dred persons were added to the Church; while in 
Upper Station (now Shelby-street) two hundred and 
four were received into the Church. In the other 
charges in the city there were times of refreshing, 
but no general revival. 

In the Louisville Circuit, George W. Crumbaugh, 
a sweet-spirited preacher, was much beloved by the 
people. He was born, in Russellville, Kentucky, 
February 19, 1812, and in the same town was con- 
verted under the ministry of Peter Akers, in Juue, 
1828, and at the same time joined the Methodist 



Western Cavaliers. 



539 



Episcopal Church. In 1830 he was licensed to 
preach by Benjamin T. Crouch. For ten years he 
exercised his gifts as a local preacher, and in 1840 
was admitted on trial into the Kentucky Conference. 
He was appointed to the Taylorsville Circuit, in the 
bounds of which he had resided previous to his en- 
tering the itinerant ranks, and where he remained 
for two years. In 1842 his field of labor was the 
Shepherdsville Circuit, and in 1843 the Louisville 
Circuit. He was a mild and pleasant preacher, and 
frequently preached with remarkable power. He 
was amongst the first ministers whom we knew, and 
through many years of intimate acquaintance we 
never heard him speak unkindly of any one. 

We are gratified to find the name of George S. 
Gatew^ood in the list of appointments. He entered 
the traveling connection in 1836, and was appointed 
to the Madison Circuit, with Absalom Woolliscroft, 
both of w T hom were returned to the same charge the 
next year. In 1838 he w r as sent alone to the Wil- 
liamsburg Circuit, and in 1839 to the Madisonville 
Circuit. In the itinerant ranks, but few men were 
more useful than George S. Gatewood. With a 
singleness of purpose he addressed himself to the 
arduous and responsible work of the ministry, and 
was successful. Hundreds were awakened and con- 
verted under his faithful labors. In 1840 he located. 
We regretted the step at the time, and rejoiced when 
he reentered the Conference. 

In the General Minutes, the Hardinsburg .District 
shows a decrease in membership. Upon a careful 
examination, however, we find a more favorable ex- 



540 



Western Cavaliers. 



hibit. Several large and influential circuits were 
taken from it and placed in the Morganfield, a new 
District, just formed. In addition to this, the num- 
bers in the Litchfield Circuit are entirely overlooked. 

In the Hardinsburg Circuit, in the pleasant village 
of Hardinsburg, Richard D. Neale, the Presiding 
Elder, reported, on the 6th of June, an interesting 
meeting, at which there were several conversions 
and accessions. The preachers in this circuit were — 
Bartlett A. Basham and Hiram T. Downard, men 
distinguished for their piety and zea]. On the 19th 
of August Mr. Neale reports fourteen conversions 
and sixteen accessions to the Church, at the fourth 
quarterly-meeting in the Hawesville Circuit, and at 
a meeting just held in the Owensboro Circuit an 
addition of six; while on the Hartford Circuit, at 
Bethel, at a meeting held July 20 and 21, there were 
" several conversions and ten additions." In the Big 
Spring Circuit, "William McD. Abbett reports "an 
increase of fifty-nine members," and says: "At our 
late camp-meeting, although disappointed in the 
ministerial help we expected, we were not disap- 
pointed in the help and presence of the Holy One of 
Israel. His power was displayed in the conviction 
and conversion of about eighteen souls." * In the 
Brandenburg Station, Wesley G. Montgomery was 
beloved and useful. The Morgantown Circuit was 
greatly blessed; George W. Burriss, the preacher, 
was a young man of great zeal, and did much good. 
No charge in the District, however, enjoyed greater 
prosperity than did the Hartford Circuit, whose 
* Western Christian Advocate, September 20, 1844. 



Western Cavaliers. 



541 



preachers were Peter Duncan and Allen Sears, both 
energetic and laborious men in the ministry. 

At this Conference the Morganfield District was 
formed, from portions of the Hardinsburg and Hop- 
kiusville Districts, and the beloved Richard Tydings 
appointed to take charge of it. In this District 
there was an increase in the membership in every 
charge. The Henderson Station, under the minis- 
try of James I. Ferree, continued to prosper, while 
the Plenderson Circuit, w T ith Learner B. Davison in 
charge, enjoyed many refreshing seasons. 

Learner B. Davison was born May 3, 1813, in 
Grayson county, Kentucky. His parents were pious 
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and 
brought him up "in the nurture and admonition of 
the Lord." On the 7th of August, 1831, he em- 
braced religion, and, during the first week in the 
following October, James L. Greenup received him 
into the Church. He believed himself to be di- 
vinely called to preach the gospel, but circumstances 
appeared unfavorable for him to enter fully upon 
the work. His duty to his parents required his at- 
tention to the affairs of home. Through several 
years his struggles were severe. However, he ex- 
ercised his gifts as a class-leader, and often held 
prayer-meetings, where he endeavored to persuade 
sinners to be reconciled to God. On the 19th of 
March, 1842, he was licensed to preach by Richard 
D. Eeale, and appointed to the Hardinsburg Circuit, 
with Seraiah S. Deering. At the Conference of 
1843 he was sent to the Henderson Circuit, where 
we now find him laboring with apostolic zeal. He 



542 



Western Cavaliers. 



commenced a meeting at Hancock's School-house 
on Christmas-day, assisted by Messrs. Dutton and 
Fallin, two faithful local preachers, at which twenty- 
two persons were converted and twenty-eight joined 
the Church. On the 18th of March he writes: 
" Since my last correspondence I have received 
thirty-four probationers — in all, since Conference, 
sixty-six."* On the 5th of September he says: 
"God has poured out his Spirit, in a very powerful 
manner, at nearly every appointment. Since my 
last correspondence one hundred and fourteen per- 
sons have been admitted on trial — making, in all, 
this year, one hundred and eighty." In every de- 
partment of his work Learner B. Davison was a 
faithful and acceptable minister of Christ, and prom- 
ised great usefulness to the Church. 

The Madisonville Circuit was served by Samuel 
Turner, and the Morganfield Circuit by Isham R. 
Finley, both of whom were useful preachers of the 
gospel. 

Samuel L. Robertson and William J. Chen o with 
were appointed to the Salem Circuit. 

In Smithland, under the ministry of Francis M. 
English, a zealous young preacher, assisted by Messrs. 
Taylor, Lancaster, and Robertson, there was an in- 
teresting revival of religion. Commencing with the 
quarterly-meeting, on the first Saturday in Decem- 
ber, the good work resulted in "many conversions" 
and "sixty -seven additions to the Church." ^In 
Eddyville, twenty-seven persons were added to the 
Church, at the first quarterly-meeting, held in De- 

* Western Christian Advocate, April 19, 1844. 



We stern Cavaliers. 



543 



cember. Ransom Lancaster, the efficient pastor, 
was at his post, and was assisted by Messrs. Taylor, 
English, and Baldwin. On the Princeton Circuit, 
Samuel D. Baldwin was instrumental in doing much 
good. Revivals crowned his labors, and many were 
happily converted. 

In the Russellville District, there was almost a 
calm. In the Logan, the Elkton, and the Green- 
ville Circuits, there was an increase of a few white 
members, but a decrease of the colored. Russellville 
and Hopkinsville show a decrease in the white and 
a small increase in the colored membership. In the 
other charges there was a decrease in both the white 
and colored membership. In the District, however, 
there were several interesting revivals of religion. 
The Church in Cadiz prospered greatly under the 
ministry of Zachariah M. Taylor. 

The name of Robert Fisk — on the Franklin Cir- 
cuit — has frequently appeared in these pages. He 
was the son of Henry and Martha Fisk, and was born, 
in Monroe county, Virginia, November 30, 1811. In 
1816 his parents, who were distinguished for piety 
and devotion to the Church, removed to Kentucky, 
and settled in Montgomery county, and became 
members of the Grassy Lick Society. Blessed with 
religious instruction, Robert Fisk became awakened 
and fully convinced of sin when quite a child. He 
joined the Methodist Church in 1826, under the min- 
istry of Isaac Collard, and soon afterward found " the 
peace of God, which passeth all understanding." 
Divinely called to the work of the ministry, he was 
licensed to exhort by Henry J. Evans, in the spring 



544 



Western Cavaliers. 



of 1834, and served as assistant preacher on the 
Danville Circuit, by the appointment of the Pre- 
siding Elder. At the ensuing Conference he was 
admitted on trial, and appointed to the Port William 
Circuit, as the colleague of Gilby Kelly. In 1835 he 
was sent to the Georgetown Circuit, with Joseph 
Marsee, and in 1836 to the Barboursville Mission. 
The field of his labor in 1837 was the Newcastle 
Circuit, with William Helm in charge, and in 1838 
the Burksville Circuit, to which he was returned the 
following vear. At the Conference of 1840 we find 
him in charge of the Seottsville Circuit, and in 1841 
on the Lawrenceburg Circuit. In 1842 he was sent 
to the Princeton Circuit, and in 1843 he succeeded 
George Riach on the Franklin Circuit. Among the 
preachers of the Kentucky Conference, but few men 
have been more laborious than Robert Fisk. Reared 
in the lap of Methodism, connected with one of the 
best families in the State of Kentucky, converted in 
childhood, and entering the ministry in early life, 
he devoted himself to the duties of his high and 
holy calling with commendable zeal, and prosecuted 
his work with fidelity and success. In the several 
charges he had filled his labors were blessed, and 
many were brought to Christ. 

The venerable George W. Taylor still presided 
over the Bowling Green District. Almost every 
portion of this extensive field exhibited signs of 
prosperity. In the Greensburg Circuit, to which 
Albert Kelly and Timothy C. Frogge were ap- 
pointed, the showers of grace were frequent and 
refreshing. The preachers were both zealous and 



Western Cavaliers. 



545 



useful. Mr. Kelly had been a traveling preacher for 
several years, but his colleague had just entered the 
Conference. 

Timothy C. Frogge was born, in Fentress county, 
Tennessee, April 21, 1821. He was happily con- 
verted to God in August, 1837, in Wayne county, 
Kentucky, and joined the Methodist Episcopal 
Church in September of the same year. In June, 
1840, he was licensed to preach by James King. 
Brought up under religious influence, in the Meth- 
odist Church, the grandson of the faithful and zeal- 
ous Timothy Carpenter, and knowing the Scriptures 
from a child, he bade fair to be useful in the minis- 
try. In 1843 he was admitted on trial into the 
Kentucky Conference. 

John S. Magee, a zealous and efficient young 
preacher, was appointed to the Barren Circuit. He 
was born, in Beavertown, Pennsylvania, December 
9, 1819, but was brought up chiefly in Fayette 
county, Kentucky, spending, however, a short time 
in Butler county, Ohio. TVhen nine years old he 
was converted, in Oxford, Ohio. In 1842 he joined 
the Church, in Salvisa, Kentucky, under the minis- 
try of Richard Deering, and the same year was 
licensed to preach by James King. At the session 
of the Kentucky Conference of 1843 he was admit- 
ted on trial, and appointed to the Barren Circuit, 
where he was useful and beloved. 

The Bowling Green Circuit enjoyed times of re- 
freshing, under the labors of Robert G. Gardner. 
Mr. Gardner was an Englishman by birth. He was 
born, in Kent county, England, May 22, 1806, and 



546 



We stern Cavaliers. 



joined the Wesleyan Methodists in August, 1822. 
In 1825 he was happily converted, and emigrated to 
America in 1830. In 1836 he entered the Kentucky 
Conference, as a traveling preacher. His first ap- 
pointment was to the Shelby Circuit, as the colleague 
of EliB. Grain. In 1837 he was sent to the Madi- 
sonville Circuit, where he remained two years. His 
field of labor for 1839 and 1840 was the Princeton 
Circuit, and in 1841 the Hodgenville Circuit. In 

1842 he was sent to the Greensburg Circuit, and in 

1843 to the Bowling Green Circuit, where we now 
find him. He was a most industrious and useful 
preacher. 

The Scottsville and Albany Circuits — the former 
in charge of Munford Pelly, and the latter in charge 
of Joel Peak — increased in numbers; while the 
Wayne Circuit, with the sweet- spirited William 
Lasley, and the Columbia Circuit, with James Penn 
and Edward A. Martin as the preachers, had seasons 
of prosperity. 

Occasional revivals crowned the labors of the 
preachers in the Harrodsburg District, yet there 
was no extraordinary display of divine power within 
its bounds, during the present year. 

The Barboursville District was more prosperous. 
In the Barboursville Circuit, under the ministry of 
William P. Read and George Y. Taylor, the revivals 
were extensive and powerful; while on the Man- 
chester Mission Allen McLaughlin was instrumental 
in the accomplishment of much good. The Louisa 
Circuit, under the pastoral care of Marcus L. King, 
increased largely in numbers and influence. 



Western Cavaliers. 



547 



In Jackson's Purchase, we find Moses Brock in 
charge of the Paducah District. The Paducah Sta- 
tion shows a considerable decrease in membership, 
while in every other portion of the District there 
were large accessions to the Church. In the Hick- 
man Circuit, in charge of Thomas Smith and Jesse 
F. Walsh, the work of revival was general. Com- 
mencing with the first of July, before the last of 
August two hundred and seventy-five souls were 
happily converted. The Mayfield Circuit was in a 
flame. Meredith H. Neal, the preacher, on the 9th 
of October, reported the revival influence through- 
out his charge. In the Paducah and the Wadesboro 
Circuits — the former served by William Lambclen 
and William Higgins, and the latter by Daniel 
Mooney — the revivals were extensive, embracing 
hundreds in their influence. 

Notwithstanding the revivals with which Ken- 
tucky was blessed, there was a decrease of five hun- 
dred and twenty-nine in the white and five hundred 
and forty -eight in the colored membership. 

We have now passed through one of the most 
brilliant periods of the history of Methodism in 
Kentucky, embracing twelve years, replete with 
blessings to the Church and the State. When, in 
1832 — the date at which this volume opens — the 
Kentucky Conference assembled in Harrodsburg, 
there were enrolled in the Minutes the names of one 
hundred and fourteen preachers, including nineteen 
who were superannuated and five who were pro- 
claiming the tidings of salvation in Jackson's Pur- 



548 



Western Cavaliers. 



chase, embraced in the Tennessee Conference. At 
that period there were in the Kentucky Conference 
six Districts, including fifty-one circuits and sta- 
tions, besides two circuits in the Purchase. The 
membership of the Church in Kentucky amounted 
to twenty-tivo thousand three hundred and. .eight white 
and four thousand six hundred and sixty -nine colored. 
Of this number seven hundred and sixty-six white 
and eighteen colored members belonged to the Pur- 
chase. Twelve years have passed, and in Kentucky 
we find one hundred and seventy-four traveling 
preachers, including fourteen on the superannuated 
list and ten in the Paducah District, Memphis Con- 
ference. Instead of six Districts we have now 
eleven in the Kentucky Conference, and instead of 
fifty-one circuits and stations we have one hundred 
and sixteen; and instead of two circuits in Jackson's 
Purchase we have the Paducah District, with eight 
separate charges, six of which are in Kentucky. 

During this period the membership in the Ken- 
tucky Conference increased from twenty-one thou- 
sand five hundred and forty-two white and four 
thousand six hundred and fifty-one colored to thirty- 
nine thousand three hundred, and seventy-seven white 
and nine thousand three hundred and sixty -two colored 
members. In Jackson's Purchase, during the same 
period, the membership increased from seven hun- 
dred and sixty-six white and eighteen colored to three 
thousand two hundred and thirty-one white and ninety- 
four colored — making a total oi forty -two thousand 
six hundred and, eight white and nine thousand four 
hundred and fifty-six colored members. As we look 
at these results we thank God and take courage. 

\/ 



The History of Methodism in Kentucky . 



BY THE REV. A. H. REDFORD, D.D. 



In Three Volumes, with Engravings — Embracing 
the Period from 1754 to 1832. 

Price per Set: Muslin, $6; Muslin, Gilt, 89; Turkey Morocco, 812. 
Thirty per cent, discount to Preachers. 



TESTIMONIALS OF EDITORS AND OTHERS. 

The portrait-gallery, through which the reader is led with sustained 
and increasing interest, is rich in original characters. How wide is 
the difference between Bascom and Axley, between Marcus Lindsey 
and Jonathan Stamper, Tevis and Holman ! The natural diversities 
in genius and bent of intellect, which liberal training in the schools is 
apt to temper and shape into the same mold of character, here stand 
out in their original, sharply-defined features. To the general reader, 
as well as to the student of mind, this gives wonderful vivacity to the 
book. Many of these men rose, in sound judgment, acute observation, 
clearness and power of utterance, far above the average capacity of the 
human mind; yet each is himself: each possesses his distinguishing 
quality, his peculiar type of character. It is matter of profound grati- 
fication that the names of so many of these faithful, excellent men, 
over whose memories time was making haste to draw the veil of ob- 
livion, have been rescued by the patient researches of our worthy his- 
torian. — Bishop Wightman . 

It should be in every man's hand. Plain, unostentatious, it re- 
counts the toils, sufferings, and successes of the noble men who planted 
Methodism in the ''Dark and Bloody Ground" of Kentucky. The 
author is a splendid annalist. He has rescued from oblivion a vast 
mass of invaluable information, and grouped it into a form that will 
forever be attractive and useful. No one can get up from the reading 
of the book without being thrilled with new and holy resolves to emu- 
late the glorious men whose names and deeds fill its pages. — Rev. C. 
W. Miller. 

I have gone through " Methodism in Kentucky" again, and cannot 
say how much I enjoyed it. Dr. Redford has rendered a service of love 
to the memories of the dead, to whom the Church owes a lasting debt 
of gratitude, which entitles him to the thanks of the entire Methodist 
Church. He has rescued their names from oblivion, and has pre- 
sented their characters in graphic briefness, yet with sufficient full- 
ness to render them recognizable to the Church, as only the wielder of 
a facile and eloquent pen can do. — Irish Correspondent. 

(549) 



It affords me great pleasure to acknowledge the reception of both 
volumes of your " History of Methodism in Kentucky," the reading of 
which carried me back io other days, and to many of the men of other 
days, with a number of whom I was familiar, and of whom I have 
many fond recollections ; and with the decided intelligence, honest in- 
dependence, and perseverance of the preachers of Kentucky I have 
always been delighted. et The History of Methodism" is full of interest, 
not to Kentucky only, but to the Methodists and lovers of Christianity 
everywhere. Just think of the labor, the suffering, and success of 
those who introduced and planted Methodism in that State, and with 
united hearts let us give God all the glory ! It affords me sincere pleas- 
ure to recommend your book to our people in Virginia, and all over 
the land, as the most interesting account of what God hath wrought, 
and by whom he hath wrought it, in that land. — Bishop Early. 

The work before us is just such a record of the names and deeds of 
these men of God as I like to read. Dr. Bedford has performed a good 
work for the Church in this publication. He has manifested a most 
indomitable spirit of patience and energy in the collection of these most 
important materials. This was a task of great difficulty, as but few 
could be found from whom important information could be obtained. 
But the work is obviously a labor of love, and right well has it been 
performed. The History should be in every family : and the preachers, 
especially, should, read it and have their hearts warmed and their zeal 
rekindled by studying the self-sacrificing character of the men of God 
who planted and watered our glorious Methodism on the "Dark and 
Bloody Ground. " — Bishop Andrew. 

We admire this History because of its fairness and faithfulness. It 
tells of the good with pleasure, and of the evil from a sense of duty. 
It shuns not to meet the issues, and shrinks not from the task of dis- 
posing of them correctly. Highly as we prize the two volumes out, 
they would fall far short of meeting the expectations of this generation. 
It is true that many who were " burning and shining lights " in 1820 
still live to bless the Church and link the past with the present, but 
the most of them have fallen asleep. And we are glad to have more 
than an intimation from the author that he intends to complete his 
work, which we sincerely hope he may do, with the same success and 
satisfaction that he has so far given. — Christian Observer. 

The history of early Methodism in Kentucky is peculiarly-interest- 
ing. The peculiarly romantic character of the pioneers of the " Dark 
and Bloody Ground." found one of its most marked developments in 
the first generation of Western Methodist itinerants, several of the 
chief of whom were either natives or foster-sons of Kentucky. Those 
early adventurers have been gathered up with great diligence and a 
good degree of success by the author of this w r ork. He seems to 
write with conscientious fidelity and in good temper. — Christian Ad- 
vocate and Journal. 

One valuable trait is its biographical sketches. These are well- 
drawn pictures of persons whose memories are precious in the Church. 
We commend it to the Church as a valuable contribution to the his- 
tory of Methodism in the daya of trial that brought out the giants of 
our cause. — Western Christian Advocate. 

The author has done a good work not only for Methodism in Ken- 
tucky, but for Methodism throughout the land. It is full of valuable 
information, is written in a pleasant style, and will furnish, when 
completed, \ valuable addition to our historic literature. — Rev. W. G. 
E. Cunnyngham, D.D. 

(550) 



The second volume of this History, like the first, gives a graphic 
account of the pioneer work of Methodism on the " Dark and Bloody 
Ground," and interesting sketches of the lives and character of the 
workers. The work is well done and the material skillfully used. 
Such a sketch of the toils and triumphs of the pioneers of Methodism, 
amid hardships little known in modern days, ought to quicken the 
pulse of the Church and stimulate the ministry to a more ardent self- 
devotion. We commend it to all our readers. — Southern Christian 
Advocate. 

The author, by the admirable style in which he has handled his 
subject, has invested the truth of religious history with all the inter- 
est of romance, and yet he has done it so beautifully that, while he 
portrays the scenes of a half century ago, we seem to live them over 
again. When he brings up the experiences of Wilkerson, and Axley, 
and others, who laid the foundation of the Church in the wilderness, 
he awakens recollections of the olden time that are dear as pearls to 
many who have not forgotten them. — Knoxville Press and Herald. 

Bedford's " History of Methodism in Kentucky" came out very op- 
portunely, to tone up the sentiment of the Church by the romance of 
the early times, to stimulate modern zeal by the example of the fathers, 
to give fresh vitality and vigor to the denominational feeling by the 
glorious records of the past. I commend the book. Let it be widely 
diffused and read till the spirit of aggression once more animates the 
Church, and the great revival shall be no longer a marvel of history, 
but a living scene, a realized experience. — Bishop Pierce. 

We hail the book with pleasure, and, from a few cursory glances, feel 
sure that we shall read it with much entertainment and profit. The 
ground over which the author takes us is classic in Methodist history. 
The noblest deeds of daring and self-denial, for the sake of preaching 
Christ on the "Dark and Bloody Ground," illustrate the pages of the 
work, and make the names of the pioneer preachers the precious oint- 
ment poured forth on the heads of their successors in the ministry. — 
Richmond Christian Advocate. 

Mr. Redford has done good service in his Church and for the cause 
of Christ. He seems to have gathered up with great care, and nar- 
rated with beautiful simplicity, the story of the early trials and tri- 
umphs of Methodism in Kentucky. The spirit of his volume is em- 
inently catholic, while yet thoroughly denominational — just the spirit 
which renders his story one of great interest to Christian people of all 
evangelical Churches. — Free Christian Commonwealth (Presbyterian). 

I congratulate the Methodists of Kentucky and the community in- 
terested in their history on the signal success of the Rev. A. H. Red- 
ford, in writing " The History of Methodism in Kentucky. y The style 
is historic, natural, and flowing. The language is easy, pertinent, and 
dignified , all telling on the subject in hand. The narrative so absorbs 
the attention and excites the interest of the reader that he is compelled 
to read this book. — Bishop Kavanaugh. 

The friends of evangelical Methodism owe a debt of lasting grati- 
tude to Dr. Redford for this admirable contribution to the literature of 
our Church. The second volume fully sustains the interest imparted 
by the first, and the entire work possesses all the fascination of a ro- 
mance. It is singularly free from that ambitious sectarian and de- 
nominational cant which too frequentlv characterize such productions. 
— Episcopal Methodist. 

Xever in our life have we been so pleased and entertained by a book. 
No family should be without it.— Texas Christian Advocate. 

(551) 



The Methodists may well congratulate themselves upon having a 
competent historian to record their past; Dr. Bedford's "History of 
Methodism, " the second volume of which is upon our table, is exceed- 
ingly well prepared and arranged — in style attractive, natural, and 
flowing, graphic in description, and the talent, industry, and integrity 
of the author are guarantees of the reliability of the work as authentic. 
— Western Recorder. 

Bedford's History is not lacking in matter now for the first time 
published, but it is also valuable for that which is not new. From 
magazines and fugitive newspaper contributions — old, dusty, obscure, 
and out of date — he has rescued materials that were as good as lost, 
and collocated them into most readable pages, and into a form perma- 
nent and of easy reference. — Bishop McTyeire. 

Showing wonderful industry and research, with very great success 
in gathering material and matter in a pleasant narrative style, clear, 
and vigorous, and well sustained, this volume abounds in facts and in- 
cidents of the greatest interest to religious readers, particularly to 
Methodists, not only in Kentucky, but everywhere throughout the 
country. — Memphis Christian Advocate. 

All the pioneers of the Church, in the ministry and laity, who did 
so much to lay the foundations of Methodism in Kentucky, come be- 
fore us in this work, invested with life-like interest, with all the 
charm of romance, and yet with all the trustiness of historic truth. 
The style is unambitious and popular, yet graceful and vigorous. — 
Nashville Christian Advocate. 

It is one of the noblest contributions to our Methodist literature that 
has been made in the last decade. It possesses all the fascination of 
the most exciting romance and all the moral effect of religion in action. 
Such a feast as is afforded by these two noble volumes is rarely en- 
joyed, and hence they should be in every family. — R. H. Rivers, D.D. 

The history of such a work of faith (Methodism) deserves to have 
been written. This has been done most faithfully and conscientiously 
by the Bev. A. H. Bedford. The author purposes a continuation of 
this work, until the whole story is told. We hope to be able to follow 
him through all his charming narratives. — Louisville Democrat. 

" Methodism in Kentucky" may be justly regarded as a valuable 
contribution to the history of our Church, especially in the West and 
South. It is well calculated to promote zeal and piety among our 
preachers and people. I read it with much interest. — Bishop Paine. 

He has produced a contribution to the history of Methodism equal 
in value to any that has appeared in England or in this country, in 
romantic interest, stirring incident, and important record. — New Or- 
leans Christian Advocate. 

Resolved, That we most cheerfully indorse " The History of Method- 
ism in Kentucky," and recommend it to all the friends and members 
of the Church. — Louisville Conference. 

Methodists everywhere, and all lovers of the history of moral hero- 
ism, ought to purchase and read this excellent History. — Rev. Lovick 
Pierce, D.D. 

We join our voice with thousands of others in thanking Dr. Bedford 
for this book, so full of interest and instruction. — Mrs. Jane T. H. Cross. 

It is the Iliad of our Church in Kentucky — a record of its heroes, 
their woes and their triumphs. — Rev. H. A. M. Henderson , D.D. 

(552) 



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